


Harry Potter and the Search for the Horcruxes

by moviefan_92



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Action, Action & Romance, Action/Adventure, Adventure, Adventure & Romance, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Angst and Feels, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Angst and Romance, Angst with a Happy Ending, Best Friends, Childhood Friends, Comfort, Comfort/Angst, Curse Breaking, Curses, Dark Fantasy, Dark Magic, Drama, Drama & Romance, Elemental Magic, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Epic Friendship, Eventual Romance, F/M, Family Drama, Fantasy, Female Friendship, Friendship, Friendship/Love, Gen, Heavy Angst, Hurt, Hurt/Comfort, Light Angst, Magic, Magic-Users, Magical Artifacts, Magical Realism, Male Friendship, Male-Female Friendship, Mild Hurt/Comfort, Muggle/Wizard Relations, Mystery, Planning Adventures, Romance, Romantic Friendship, Slow Romance, Sorcerers, Sorceresses, Spells & Enchantments, Teen Romance, Teenage Drama, War, Witch Curses, Witchcraft, Witches, Wizards
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-21
Updated: 2018-12-21
Packaged: 2019-09-24 07:35:39
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 18
Words: 33,690
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17096519
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/moviefan_92/pseuds/moviefan_92
Summary: Takes place after the sixth book. Harry and his friends begin their search to find Voldemort’s Horcruxes and to finish off the Dark Lord once and for all. Along the way, they find out shocking secrets about Voldemort and Harry’s pasts.Adventure/Fantasy/Romance/Friendship/Drama. Pairings: Harry and Ginny, Ron and Hermione. Rated for some violence.STORY COMPLETEFirst story of four.





	1. Whispers In The Night

**Author's Note:**

> (This is the first story in my Harry Potter series I am writing. I hope you all enjoy my writing and will find time to leave me a few reviews.)
> 
> Disclaimer: I own nothing

**Originally posted on 08/24/06 - 07/18/07 at: _<https://www.fanfiction.net/s/3121514/1/Harry-Potter-and-the-Search-for-the-Horcruxes>_**

 

 

**" HARRY POTTER AND THE SEARCH FOR THE HORCRUXES"**

**Chapter: Whispers In The Night**

" _Crucio!"_  cried a cold voice.

A boy with pale skin and blond hair rolled on the ground, screaming in pain, as the curse soared through his body.

"Stop it! Stop it! Leave him alone!" cried Narcissa, as two cloaked figures held her back.

The curse stopped, as Voldemort turned his attention to her. "He has failed in his mission." Voldemort hissed. "Maybe this will make him see that I shall not tolerate failure.  _Crucio!"_

Draco cried out in pain as the curse inflicted pain on him again.

"Leave him alone!" Narcissa shouted, struggling to get out of the Death Eaters grip. "The plan wasn't a failure. Dumbledore is dead. You got what you wanted."

Voldemort turned his wand on her. "Did I?" he growled, his eyes burning into Narcissa's. "Did I really? According to my plan Draco should have been the one to kill him, not Severus. Is that not correct?"

"Yes, my lord." answered the Death Eater on Narcissa's right.

"What difference does it make?" cried Narcissa. "He's dead."

"But Draco didn't do it!" Voldemort snapped. "And thanks to his failure, Severus had to blow his cover, and can no longer spy on the Order."

"You didn't even want him to do it in the first place!" whispered Narcissa. "You wanted him to die in the attempt. It was all punishment for Lucius's mistake."

She looked over at her husband, who had a pained expression on his face.

Voldemort smiled. "I see you really think things through, Narcissa. But that is not the point. The point is that Draco failed."

"But why must he pay for Lucius's mistake in the first place?" asked Narcissa.

"Narcissa be quiet!" demanded Lucius.

"No, I shall not. If you hadn't failed in the first place, none of this would have happened. You should be the one to pay. Not our son. Please, leave him alone."

Voldemort looked at Narcissa with an amused expression on his face. "Very well." laughed Voldemort. "I will leave him alone... Lucius, you do it."

Lucius looked at Voldemort with a shocked expression.

"Is there a problem?" sneered Voldemort.

Lucius struggled to find his voice. He finally found it. "No, my lord."

He pointed his wand at his son. Draco looked up at his father with a pleading look. "Father... please..." he begged.

"I'm sorry." whispered Lucius.  _"Crucio!"_

Draco rolled around screaming. The pain wasn't as intense as it had been when Voldemort had cursed him, but it was still unbelievably painful.

"Stop it." begged Narcissa.

Lucius didn't stop.

"Stop it!"

Lucius still didn't stop.

"STOP IT!"

Lucius finally stopped. Draco laid on the ground twitching.

"Narcissa you are only making things worse." Lucius said.

"Indeed you are." agreed Voldemort. "Kill her."

Lucius head snapped towards Voldemort.

"Kill her now."

Lucius remained where he was. "My lord." he begged. "Please my lord. Must I-"

"Yes!" hissed Voldemort. "Do it now, or I will. Then I'll kill you too."

Lucius stood where he was, then slowly raised his wand to his wife.

"Lucius!" cried Narcissa in disbelief. "You couldn't."

Lucius aimed his wand at her, his arm shaking.

Narcissa turned to Snape. "Severus…" He didn't even look at her. She turned to the person on her left. "Bella."

"Sorry Cissy." said Bellatrix.

Narcissa turned back to her husband. She looked into his eyes. Lucius looked back into hers. Then he shut his eyes.

" _Avada Kedavra!"_

There was a flash of green light.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (A/N: I hope everyone enjoys my story. Please review.)


	2. Leaving Privet Drive

**Chapter 2: Leaving Privet Drive**

Harry woke with a start. He put his hand to his head, his scar prickling. He didn't like what he just saw. He rarely had dream like those, mostly because Voldemort had begun using Occlumency, but on a few occasions Voldemort allowed Harry to see some of the terrible things he had done, if they were not important, such as the vision he just witnessed.

There was suddenly a loud snort. Harry looked in the direction of the sound and cracked a smile. Ron Weasley was fast asleep, half in, half out of his sleeping bag, snoring loudly. A large trail of drool was running down his cheek.

Hermione Granger was in a sleeping bag next to Ron, sleeping quite peacefully.

The two of them had spent the summer at Number 4, Privet Drive with Harry. At first his Uncle Vernon wasn't so keen on letting two more wizards live in his house, but when he found out that they were legally allowed to do magic, and were capable of jinxing him, he allowed it. As long as they promised not to do any magic of course.

Harry looked at the clock. It was 4 in the morning. Tomorrow was Harry's 17th birthday. This meant that the magical protection that kept Voldemort away would vanish. The good thing about this was that he would leave Privet Drive forever. He would then return to the Burrow for Bill and Fleur's wedding. After that he would go to Godric's Hollow to visit his parent's grave, then begin his search for the Horcruxes.

There were two things making him uneasy about this. The first was visiting his parent's graves. He didn't know what he would find there, if he found anything at all.

The other thing was returning to the Burrow meant seeing Ginny again. He hadn't seen her since they broke up at Dumbledore's funeral, but he had been thinking about her all summer.

It hadn't been easy to end it that awful day, but he knew that Voldemort used those closest to him in order to get what he wanted. He had already done this with Sirius, and it had gotten him killed. Harry would not let that happen again. He wasn't even sure if he was going to let Ron and Hermione go with him. But they had stood by him since the beginning, and would not leave him now. Harry was glad to have such loyal friends.

Harry laid back down and tried to get some sleep. He didn't want to think about the difficult journey ahead. He just wanted to spend the rest of the time with his friends that he could.

Harry closed his eyes, hoping no more dreams like the one he just had came.

None did.

"HARRY POTTER! GET DOWN HERE!"

Harry's eyes snapped open as he heard his uncle yell. Hermione sat up quickly while Ron jumped to his feet screaming, "The spiders are coming!"

"No Ron, it's just Uncle Vernon." Harry said sleepily.

"RIGHT NOW!" Uncle Vernon called.

The three of them went downstairs. All three of the Dursley's were already up. Each one of them looked extremely happy.

Uncle Vernon looked at Harry and his friends and smiled. Uncle Vernon was  _smiling_  at them.

"Happy Birthday!" Uncle Vernon said cheerfully.

Harry was taken back for a moment. The Dursley's had never in the past hinted that they even knew Harry had a birthday.

"Err… thanks." Harry said, eyeing them suspiciously.

"So you're 17 now, eh?" said Uncle Vernon smiling more broadly.

"Yeah, so…"

"So, that means you can leave." said Uncle Vernon in a triumphant voice. "Don't think I've forgotten what Oldbus Doubledork, or whatever the old geezer's name was, said last year. That once you were 17 that protection would leave you, or something. I just know it means you don't need to stay here."

Now Harry was starting to catch on. He understood perfectly why the Dursley's were so happy. But he couldn't believe that they had woken him up at 6 A.M. to get rid of him.

He looked at his friends and saw that they were shocked that the Dursley's had the nerve to just boot him out.

"Yes, that's true." agreed Harry.

"Good, then get out." said Uncle Vernon, his voice suddenly growing cold. "You and your friends."

Ron opened his mouth to say something, but Hermione spoke up first. "I can't believe you're just kicking him out like this."

Uncle Vernon rounded on her. "We've taken him in, we've raised him, we've taken care of him, we've dealt with his abnormality for 16 ruddy years. But no more. He's now legally an adult, according to  _your_ laws, he has his godfather's house, he doesn't need to stay here anymore. Now get OUT!"

Hermione seemed shocked at Uncle Vernon's response. Ron had his mouth open. But Harry seemed like he was expecting something like this.

"He's right." he said. There's no reason for us to be here. Let's go."

Uncle Vernon muttered something as Harry turned to leave.

"Sorry, didn't catch that." Harry said coldly.

"I said, that I hope I never see any of your kind ever again." spat Uncle Vernon.

Harry started to smile. Little did the Dursleys know that they were going to be seeing a lot more wizards. Harry had taken the liberty to write to the Ministry of Magic and requested some aurors to protect the Dursleys and Miss Figg, just in case Voldemort decided to send some Death Eaters to see if they could get any information.

Scrimgeour had agreed on it, and also asked Harry again if he would be willing to support the ministry. Harry had a feeling that Scrimgeour was still trying to get on his good side in order to gain his support. But Harry said 'no' again but thanked the minister for his help.

"Right, about that." Harry said. "I requested some aurors to guard you."

"You requested what, oars?" Uncle Vernon asked in confusion.

"Aurors." explained Harry. "There sort of wizard policemen and detectives."

"You mean that there's going to be even  _more_  of your kind around?" gasped Uncle Vernon.

"Yes, for your protection. Is this a problem?"

"We don't need any auroras to protect us."

"Oh yes you do."

"And why would we need protection?"

Harry rolled his eyes. Had the Dursleys heard nothing that Dumbledore said last year, besides that Harry could leave when he was 17.

"In case Voldemort comes." he said.

Uncle Vernon grunted. "What's he have to do with this?"

"Uh, everything." said Harry in an annoyed voice.

"Why would he come here once you're gone?"

"Because you're my family, like it or not. You know things."

"Well you can keep your o-roars." said Uncle Vernon in a final sort of way.

"They're not just for your protection. They're also for Miss Figg."

Uncle Vernon's eyes widened. "WHAT? You mean she's one of... one of...  _you?"_

"Well, yes and no." said Harry, trying to figure out the best way to explain it. "She's a squib."

"A squid?"

" _Squib."_ Hermione corrected him. "It means her parents were wizards, but she can't do magic."

There were shocked gasps from the Dursleys.

"Oops." whispered Hermione.

"NEVER USE THE 'M' WORD IN THIS HOUSE!" shouted Uncle Vernon.

"Sorry-" Hermione began, but Harry cut her off.

"The point is," he said, trying to sound calm, "that even though she can't do-" he rolled his eyes- "you-know-what, she's still working for us, and Voldemort will come for her too."

"Now see here, boy," said Uncle Vernon angrily. "I've had enough of you and your kind. I will not get my family involved with any more of your abnormality. We were good enough to take you in, but I will not have your kind marching around my house. And as for Miss Figg, if she wants to work for your kind, then she should go with you, and leave us  _normal_ people alone. You're all a rotten bunch, and I'll be damned before I let your kind interfere in my life anymore."

Harry lost his patience. He pulled out his wand and thought  _"Levicorpus."_ Uncle Vernon was lifted off the ground and hung in the air by his ankle. Aunt Petunia and Dudley went up against the wall, as far away from Harry as possible.

"You have no idea how long I've wanted to do that." Harry said. "Now  _you_ listen to  _me_. I have never done anything to you or your family, yet all you ever did was make me miserable. And now that I'm trying to help you, you have the nerve to yell at me. Well let me make something clear; I've had enough. I'm not putting up with it any longer. The aurors are coming, whether you like it or not, and we are leaving."

Harry let Uncle Vernon down, and stormed out of the room. Ron and Hermione followed with shocked looks on their faces.

About half an hour later, Harry, Ron, and Hermione were all packed and ready to leave. They dragged their trunks down the stairs and headed for the door. The Dursleys watched them go, looking terrified.

Harry turned to face them, ready to give them their final farewell. "Well, I guess this is it." he said. "Good bye."

None of the Dursleys answered him. They just stared at him with great dislike.

Ron and Hermione looked at Harry who just shrugged and opened the door.

"Harry, you alright?" Ron asked, once they were outside.

Harry smiled at his friends.

"Actually I feel pretty good." he answered.

No sooner had the words came out of his mouth came a series of loud  _cracks!_  Several voices cried out, followed by the sound of an explosion.

Harry, Ron, and Hermione turned around. At least 20 Death Eaters were there, with there backs turned to them. Their wands were out and pointing at the Dursley's house, which was now on fire.

"Come out, Potter!" cried a Death Eater.

They thought he was inside. Harry, Ron, and Hermione pulled out their wands and ran towards the Death Eaters.


	3. Street Fight

**Chapter 3: Street Fight**

The Dursleys came running out of the house. They stared in horror at the army of Death Eaters.

"WHO THE BLOODY HELL ARE YOU?" shouted Uncle Vernon.

The Death Eaters turned their wands on him.

"Silence muggle!" one of them demanded. "Where is Potter? We know he's in there. Now hand him over."

"Your too late!" cried Uncle Vernon. "He's gone."

" _Crucio!"_  cried the Death Eater.

Uncle Vernon was blasted off his feet. Aunt Petunia screamed as she watched her husband being tortured, and tried to hide Dudley behind her, which was a failed attempt.

"Liar." hissed the Death Eater. "You can not fool us. We know he's here. Now hand him over, or you shall die."

" _Stupefy!"_  cried Harry, Ron, and Hermione, almost at the same time.

Three of the Death Eaters were stunned. The others whirled around as the three of them cried  _"Stupefy"_  again. Three more Death Eaters were stunned.

Several Death Eaters sent their own stunners at them.

" _Protego!"_  cried Harry, repelling the stunners.

The Death Eater that had cursed Uncle Vernon stepped forward. "Harry Potter, how good to finally meet you."

Harry glared at him. "Wish I could say the same."

The Death Eater laughed. "My wife wasn't kidding. You do have an attitude."

Harry felt a feeling of deep hatred fill him. He had a feeling he knew who this Death Eater was. "And who's your wife?"

The Death Eater laughed again. "Why none other than Bellatrix Lestrange."

Yup, Harry's thoughts were correct. He remembered Voldemort had said the Lestranges were sent to Azkaban rather than denying their loyalty to him. He also knew that they were the most dangerous of all of Voldemort's supporters.

"Well you can tell her that I look forward to avenging Sirius's death." shouted Harry. Then he thought  _"Levicorpus."_

Rodolphus Lestrange was lifted into the air. Ron and Hermione took that as the time to attack. So did the Death Eaters.

Spells went flying in all directions. Unable to block them all, Harry apparated away.

" _Lets see the ministry try to charge me for apparating without a license."_  Harry thought, as he landed on the other side of the Death Eaters. No sooner had he landed, there came a flash of green light. The ground exploded next to Harry, as the Killing Curse blasted the ground.

"NO KILLING!" shouted another Death Eater. "THE DARK LORD WANTS THEM ALIVE!"

So they weren't going to kill them. One less thing to worry about.

" _Petrificus Totalus!"_  Harry cried, pointing his wand at a Death Eater advancing on Ron.

Ron turned his wand on Harry.  _"Reducto."_  he cried.

The spell flew past Harry's head and struck a Death Eater right behind him.

Harry was about to thank him, but noticed another Death Eater coming up behind Ron. He was about to cry out to him when Hermione threw herself on the Death Eaters back.

The Death Eater stumbled from her weight and the purple flames that came out of his wand just missed Ron. Harry recognized that spell, and knew who the Death Eater was.

Dolohov tried to throw Hermione off him, but Ron spun around and yelled  _"Impedimenta!"_

Dolohov was hit in the face by the spell and flew backwards. But the other Death Eaters kept coming. The three of them were surrounded.

"Going to give up Potter?" asked Rodolphus.

_Crack!_ Harry disapparated from the circle of Death Eaters, Ron and Hermione did the same. Several Death Eaters shot stunners in places they thought they would appear. Unfortunately for Hermione, she was hit by a stunner the moment she reappeared.

"HERMIONE!" shouted Harry and Ron.

The Death Eaters turned to the sound of the screams. They raised their wands, but were not fast enough.

" _Stupefy!"_  cried Harry, as Ron shot his own stunner.

" _Protego!"_

Harry's spell was deflected, Ron's was not.

"ENOUGH!" shouted Rodolphus. "Potter you and your friends will surrender or we will be forced to kill your family."

Harry looked back at the Dursleys. A Death Eater was standing besides the Dursleys with his wand on them. He was short and his wand hand was silver. It was Peter Pettigrew.

"You!" Harry gasped.

Wormtail laughed. "Yes, Harry. Don't make me kill them."

Harry looked at the Dursleys. They were huddled together terrified. He looked back at Ron, who still had his wand pointed to at the Death Eaters, then to Hermione, who was unconscious on the ground.

" _Stupefy!"_ cried several voices.

Some of the Death Eaters were hit, the rest scattered. Mad-Eye Moody, Tonks, and several aurors had arrived. They began firing spells at the Death Eaters.

Harry didn't hesitate. He pointed his wand at Wormtail and cried  _"Sectumsempra!"_

Wormtail flew backwards with a large cut across his chest.

"Harry behind you!" he heard Tonks cry.

Harry turned to see Rodolphus with his wand him.

" _Stup-"_

" _Diffindo!"_  shouted Ron.

Rodolphus's entire arm was cut off. He backed away screaming, before being hit by a stunner.

There were several loud  _cracks,_  as the remaining Death Eater retreated.

Harry and Ron ran over to Hermione.

"Hermione!" cried Ron. "Are you ok?"

"Get out of the way." growled Moody, pointing his wand at Hermione.  _"Ennervate!"_

Hermione opened her eyes and sat up.

"You alright?" asked Harry.

"Yeah. What happened?" said Hermione, looking around.

"We got a message from Miss Figg saying that Death Eaters were here." replied Tonks.

"Good thing we got here in time." said Moody. "Should have expected something like this though. Oh well, might as well clean things up here. Dawlish, return to the ministry and get some Obliterators here. Clear everyone's mind in the entire area. Also get some more aurors here to get these Death Eaters to Azkaban."

Dawlish nodded, and vanished.

"You three better get to the Burrow." said Tonks.

"Yeah, and best not to mention this." said Moody. "You don't need to worry anyone."

The others nodded in agreement.

Harry looked back at the Dursleys, who were staring at their burning house. A strange feeling came over Harry. He suddenly pitied the Dursleys. They hadn't deserved this, even if they had made him miserable his whole life. He suddenly, perhaps for the first time, realized how much he actually did owe the Dursleys. They did put themselves in danger by taking Harry in. They did take care of him and supplied him with food and shelter. For the first time Dumbledore's words that he had said to Harry in his 5th year seemed to take effect.  _"She took you. She may have taken you grudgingly, furiously, unwillingly, bitterly, yet she still took you."_

Harry sighed, and walked over to the Dursleys. Uncle Vernon saw him coming and jumped in front of Aunt Petunia and Dudley.

"GET AWAY FROM US!" he shouted.

Harry stopped. He stared at the Dursleys with great pity.

"YOU HEARD ME, GET AWAY!" Uncle Vernon shouted with a mixture of anger and fear. "YOU RUINED EVERYTHING! YOU'VE BEEN NOTHING BUT TROUBLE SINCE DAY ONE! NOW YOU'VE PUT ME AND MY FAMILY IN DANGER! LOOK WHAT YOU'VE DONE TO US! YOU… YOU… JUST GET OUT OF HERE AND NEVER COME NEAR US AGAIN!"

Harry raised his wand. The Dursleys ducked, as if Harry was about to hit them.

" _Aguamenti!"_  cried Harry, shower the house with water and putting out the flames.

He gave the Dursleys one final sad look before apparating away. Vanishing from their lives forever.


	4. Ginny's Argument

Chapter 4: Ginny's Argument

Crash! Harry apparated to the Burrow, and was knocked over by a wizard caring a large vase filled with flowers.

"Watch where you're going!" snapped the wizard. He pointed his wand at the broken vase and said "Reparo!"

The wizard picked up the vase and ran off so fast that he didn't even hear Harry apologize.

"Get out of the way!" cried another wizard.

Harry turned around and saw that Ron and Hermione had nearly had a collision with another wizard as he did.

"So rude." said Hermione.

"Look at all this." said Ron, looking around. "Fleur's family had better be paying for all this."

"In muggle weddings they normally do." said Hermione. "It's tradition."

"I like that tradition." said Ron.

The three of them made their way through all the wedding supplies.

"No, no, those go over there!" cried a woman. "What are those? Those are not tulips! No, we need them now. Why is… we order an ice sculpture of a phoenix, not a centaur!"

Mrs. Weasley was giving orders to all the wedding decorators, telling them which things went where and what was in the wrong spot. She stopped when she noticed the three of them.

"Ron, Harry, Hermione! How are you?" she cried. "How was your summer?"

"It was… interesting." said Ron.

"That's splendid." said Mrs. Weasley. "Your father would probably like to know all about your stay with the muggles. You know, we actually weren't expecting you so early."

"Oh… uh… we couldn't sleep." Harry invented. He thought Moody was right in saying that he didn't need to worry anyone about the Death Eater attack.

"I know what you mean." said Mrs. Weasley. "The wedding is only a few days away, and there's still so much to do. Bill and Fleur are so excited. And I must say, I am too."

"How is Bill anyway?" asked Hermione.

Mrs. Weasley frowned a little, but tried to hide it. "He's doing much better. He's back to his old self."

She pointed across the yard. Bill was standing there, with Fleur hanging onto his arm, also giving orders to the wedding decorators. His face was scarred, but not as bad as Moody's. He still had both his eyes, and his nose wasn't missing any chunks.

"Fleur was right though." said Mrs. Weasley. "All those scars show is that Bill is brave."

She wiped her eyes. "So Harry, how does it feel to be a man?"

"Oh, um… it feels pretty good." Harry said. He had momentarily forgotten that he was a legal wizard now.

"I've made a schedule for the day." said Mrs. Weasley. "We'll be celebrating your birthday a little later."

"That's ok, Mrs. Weasley." said Harry quickly. "The wedding is more important. We don't need to-"

"Oh don't be silly." said Mrs. Weasley, cutting him off. "Of course we do. You are now a man. Besides, I have the whole day planned out. There's plenty of time for celebrating. We still have a few days before… What are you doing? I told you those go over there!"

Mrs. Weasley ran past the three of them, and headed over to some other decorators.

"Is all this stuff really necessary?" asked Ron.

"Of course it is!" exclaimed Hermione. "Don't you know how important a wedding is?"

"Well of course I do." said Ron. "It's just, don't you think this is over doing it a bit?"

"No!" replied Hermione.

Ron leaned over and whispered to Harry. "What is up with girls and weddings?"

"Hi Harry." said a small voice.

Harry felt his insides tighten. He knew that voice. He had heard it in his dreams almost every night. He turned around. There was Ginny Weasley.

"Hi Ginny." replied Harry.

"Ron, Hermione." said Ginny, nodding at the other two.

"Hi." said Ron and Hermione at the same time.

"How was your summer?"

"Alright." said Harry.

There was an uncomfortable silence between them.

"Uh, Ron, why don't we go help with the decorating?" said Hermione, breaking the silence.

"Are you kidding?" said Ron. "Look at all these people. They don't need our help."

"We can help get it done faster." said Hermione, her eyes darting back and forth between Harry and Ginny.

"Oh." Ron said, catching on. "Right."

He and Hermione left, leaving Harry and Ginny alone. Harry looked back at Ginny, feeling awkward. He knew this moment would come, but he still felt uneasy. He wanted to reach out and hold her, but he knew he couldn't be involved with her. For her own sake.

Suddenly Ginny threw her arms around him. Harry was startled for a moment, but then he put his arms around her to.

"Oh Harry, I've missed you!" cried Ginny.

"I've missed you too, Ginny." said Harry, stroking her hair.

"I've been thinking about you all summer." said Ginny.

"I've been thinking about you too." said Harry.

Ginny let go of him. She looked at him with her eyes shining with tears. "Harry, I've been thinking about what you said at Dumbledore's funeral. And I don't care if Voldemort finds out about us. I don't want to be away from you anymore."

Harry sighed. He had expected this, and was ready for it. "Ginny listen-"

"No, you listen." snapped Ginny. "I know there will be risks, but I'm willing to take those risks if it means we can be together. I love you Harry Potter. Do you understand me? I love you!"

Harry didn't know what to say. Ginny was really willing to put herself in danger just to be with him. But he couldn't, he wouldn't let her.

"Ginny, we can't do this." said Harry. "I'm don't want you to get hurt because of me."

"Don't you think I can make my own decisions?" said Ginny fiercely.

"Of course I do." said Harry. "It's just, I can't bare to think about what Voldemort might do to you if he found out about us. Just look what happened to Sirius. As long as Voldemort is alive he'll never stop hunting me. I have to stop him."

"You're letting Ron and Hermione go with you." said Ginny, refusing to give up. "Why can't I go?"

Harry opened his mouth to say something, but closed it. He was going to let Ron and Hermione come with him, but Ginny had a point. "Ginny look, Ron and Hermione have stood up against Voldemort too."

"So have I." said Ginny.

"Yes, but he wants them too. It's not just me anymore. He also wants them. But not you. I don't want to give Voldemort a reason to kill you too. I don't want anything to happen to you. I love you too much."

Ginny looked into his eyes and said very quietly. "You love me too?"

Harry opened his mouth to say something, but closed it again. He sighed before saying, "Yes, Ginny. I do. But don't you see, that's why I don't want you to come with me? I would never be able to live with myself if anything happened to you."

Ginny didn't say anything. She just looked into his eyes, with tears pouring from hers. She suddenly moved forward and kissed Harry. When she pulled back she said, "I'm not afraid, Harry. I always knew you would go after Voldemort. If you want to protect me, then let me come with you."

Harry shook his head. "I can't do that Ginny."

There was silence between them for a few seconds.

"Well then stay with me until you leave." said Ginny.

Harry was about to argue, but decided not to. He smiled at her and kissed her.

"Alright, you win." said Harry. "But you still can't come with me."

Ginny smirked at him. "I still have a few days to wear you down." she said.

Harry laughed and kissed her again.

"Come on, lets see if Ron and Hermione need help with the decorations."

The two of them headed over towards Ron and Hermione, hand in hand.


	5. The Weasley's Wedding

**Chapter 5: The Weasley's Wedding**

The next couple of days were filled with fun and happiness. Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Ginny were spending all their time together. Everyone else was busy setting up for the wedding. Harry partly didn't want the wedding to come, because once it was over he would have to begin his search for the Horcruxes. But regardless of whether Harry wanted the wedding to come or not, it came.

"WAKE UP!" cried Mrs. Weasley, bursting into the room.

Harry sat straight up so fast he thought he pulled a muscle in his back, and Ron jumped up screaming in a high-pitched voice.

"Come on you two." said Mrs. Weasley excitedly. "Today's the big day. Come on now, get up. The wedding is in a few hours, and guests are already arriving. Now up, up, up, up!"

She left closing the door behind her. Ron groaned and laid down again, pulling the covers over his head. Harry yawned and got up.

"Come on Ron, we better get ready." said Harry.

Ron groaned again and didn't get up. Harry threw his pillow at him.

"Hey!" cried Ron in surprise.

"Come on Ron." said Harry, getting up.

Harry pulled on his dress robes and went downstairs. It was packed. There were guests everywhere. Harry squeezed through the heavy crowd of people and went outside. There were several people out here too. Through the crowd Harry spotted Fred and George. He made his way over to them.

"Hey guys." said Harry.

"Harry!" cried Fred, seizing his hand in both of his and shaking it so fast Harry's whole body shook. "Absolutely splendid to see you, old boy!"

"Charmed, I'm sure!" said George, grabbing Harry's other hand and shaking it just as fast as Fred.

"V-very f-f-funny-y guys-s." said Harry, as the twins shook him.

"So what's this we here about you dating our sister?" said Fred, taking a serious tone.

"What… oh… uh…"

Fred laughed. "I'm just fooling you."

"Yeah, if she's going out with anyone, we would prefer it were you." said George.

"Er, thanks." said Harry with relief.

"So when is the wedding?" said George.

"Um, today." said Harry confused.

"We meant yours." said Fred.

"What?"

"Just kidding, just kidding." said Fred, slapping Harry on the back. "It does seem that Mum was right though."

"About what?" asked Harry his confusion rising.

"About people eloping left and right since You-Know-Who came back." answered Fred.

"Really?" said Harry.

"Yeah, didn't you know?" George asked. "Tonks and Lupin are engaged."

"Well I sort of expected that." said Harry.

"So are Hagrid and Madam Maxime." said Fred.

"Really?" Harry said again. This news was surprising. "Well, um, good for them."

"Hey Fred, what do you say we go find our future wives?" laughed George.

"Spectacular idea, my dear George." replied Fred.

And with that, the twins walked off, laughing. Harry was left to wonder if perhaps Mrs. Weasley was right about people rushing things, for fear of being dead the next day.

"'Arry P-Potter." said a small voice.

Harry turned around. There was a small girl with silvery blond hair, looking quite nervous.

"Uh, hi." said Harry.

"Do you remeember me?" she asked.

"Sure I do." Harry replied. "You're Fleur's sister, Gabrielle."

She looked pleased. "I neever got to thank you, for zaving me during ze Triweezard Tournament."

"It was no trouble." said Harry.

Gabrielle turned red. It reminded Harry about Ginny's crush on him several years back.

"Vould you like to danze vit me vhen ze danze floor iz open?" she asked, turning a darker shade of red.

"Sorry, he's taken." said a voice behind Harry.

Ginny wrapped her arms around Harry, and gave him a quick kiss on the cheek. Gabrielle glared at her and stormed off.

Harry stared at Ginny. She looked stunning. She was dressed in gold, and her hair was braded and tied into knots on each side of her head, giving her a look similar to Princess Leia.

"What are you staring at?" said Ginny with a smile.

"You look…  _amazing_. _"_ said Harry.

Ginny smiled more broadly. "Thanks. You do too."

Harry kissed her.

"Oh no." said Ginny suddenly.

"What?" asked Harry, afraid he did something wrong.

"The aurors are here." said Ginny.

"So." said Harry, looking behind him. Weren't there supposed to be some aurors here as protection for the wedding. But then he realized what the problem was. "Oh." There were not only aurors here, but also Scrimgeour, and Umbridge. "Were they invited?"

Ginny merely raised her eyebrows.

"Right, stupid question." said Harry. "Excuse me."

Harry walked over to Scrimgeour. When he spotted Harry he approached him too.

"Harry, how are you?" Scrimgeour said happily. "Have you had a good summer?"

"What are you doing here, minister?" Harry asked nastily.

The smile vanished from Scrimgeour's face. "Well protection was asked for the wedding."

Harry glared at him. "And since when has the Minister of Magic volunteered to protect people himself?"

Scrimgeour glared back at him. "Harry, walk with me."

Harry groaned, but walked with him.

After about a few seconds Scrimgeour said, "Stan Shunpike has been released."

Harry felt a mixture a joy and anger. "Was he released because you don't suspect him of being a Death Eater anymore, or because I said I don't believe he's a Death Eater?"

Scrimgeour didn't say anything, but Harry got his answer from the look on his face.

"So you're still going to fight with me?" asked Scrimgeour nastily.

"The only one I am fighting is Voldemort." snapped Harry.

Scrimgeour flinched at the name. "Well Harry, so are we. And we would really appreciate your support."

"I'll give my support, minister, when I feel like the ministry is doing what it's supposed to do."

"Well what exactly are we doing that you don't like?"

Harry considered him for a moment. "Well for one thing, bribing me won't work. And I think there are quite a few changes that needs to be done."

"Well if you'll discuss them with me, I'll have Dolores get to work on them immediately." said Scrimgeour, sounding hopeful.

"Why is she still working at the ministry in the first place?" said Harry nastily.

Scrimgeour seemed taken back for a moment. "Why wouldn't she be?"

Rage started to fill Harry. "Well for one thing, she made me carve the words  _'I must not tell lies'_  into my hand, when the ministry was the one telling lies. She also attacked Hagrid and Professor McGonagall for no reason. She attempted to use the Cruciatus Curse on me. Oh, and she was also the one who sent dementers on me two years ago, and then try to expel me for fighting them. Forget not being fired, why isn't she in Azkaban?"

Scrimgeour didn't seem to know what to say. "Well, uh… Harry… there are… more important things happening right now."

"And all you want me to do is lie, to make it seem like the ministry is winning the war against Voldemort." snapped Harry. He stopped walking and glared at the minister. "You want my support minister, fine! But lets get one thing straight. If, and I mean if, I give my support, I'm only going to support the things I feel deserve my support. And once you change the things I don't approve of, then I will give further support."

Scrimgeour seemed satisfied. "That's fine, Harry."

"There's also a few things that you owe me, for all the abuse me and my friends have gone through." said Harry.

"Very well. Want do you want?"

"Well first of all, fire Umbridge."

Scrimgeour, who seemed to be expecting this called, "Dolores, get over here!"

Umbridge waddled over to Harry and Scrimgeour. "Yes, minister. You called." she said sweetly, giving Harry a dirty look.

"Yes Dolores, you're fired." said Scrimgeour simply.

Umbridge's mouth fell open.

"I beg your pardon minister, but I believe I heard you wrong, so silly of me." Umbridge said, with a nervous laugh.

"No Dolores, you heard me very well." replied Scrimgeour. "You're fired."

Harry could see Umbridge's face turning red. It gave him great satisfaction.

"But minister, I don't understand?"

"Kingsley!" called Scrimgeour impatiently.

One of the aurors came over to them.

"Is there a problem, minister?" he asked.

"Please remove Dolores."

"Yes sir." replied Kingsley.

"Second," said Harry, as Umbridge was dragged away protesting. "No more lies from the Daily Prophet. From now on I only want articles based on facts reported. I also want an official apology for me and my friends, for everything you said and did."

"That's fair." said Scrimgeour. "Anything else?"

Harry thought about it for a moment. He wondered how far Scrimgeour really was willing to go. "Yes, give Mr. Weasley a raise."

Scrimgeour seemed a little surprised at Harry's request. "Done. Is that all?"

Harry nodded. "Yes, for now at least." He started to walk away but stopped, and turned back to Scrimgeour. "Oh, and one for thing. Get out of here, you weren't invited." he said rudely.

Scrimgeour's mouth dropped open at Harry's rudeness, but he recovered himself and vanished.

Harry smiled, satisfied.

"Harry, it's starting." called Ron, who seemed to have just gotten up.

Harry ran over and took a seat. He watched as Fleur made her way up the ail towards Bill. When they reached each other, they held hands and pulled out their wands.

"Do you, Bill Weasley, take Fleur Delacour to be your wife, to love and to hold as long as you both shall live?" addressed the priest.

"I do." replied Bill.

He tapped Fleur's ring finger with his wand. A gold diamond ring appeared on her finger. It began glowing red. The light engulfed Fleur until she actually glowed with red light. Mrs. Weasley began crying.

The priest now spoke to Fleur. "Do you, Fleur Delacour, take Bill Weasley to be your husband, to and love and to hold as long as you both shall live?"

"I do." replied Fleur.

She tapped Bill's ring finger. A gold wedding band appeared over Bill's finger. The ring began glowing blue. And, just as what happened to Fleur, he was engulfed by the blue light. Mrs. Weasley began crying harder than ever.

"I now pronounce you husband and wife." declared the priest. "You may kiss the bride."

Bill and Fleur kissed. The light surrounding the two of them came together and turned purple. The light erupted all around them and vanished. Everyone was on their feet clapping. Mrs. Weasley was crying her eyes out, with her arms wrapped around Mr. Weasley.

"I guess this means I have to stop calling her 'Phlegm'." said Ginny.

Harry smiled at her and continued to clap.

"Ok, iz everybody ready?" called Fleur.

She turned around and threw the bouquet in the air. It headed straight for Harry. He was about to catch it when the wind blew it to his left. Four hands reached up and caught it at the same time. Ron and Hermione looked at each other, both having caught the bouquet. Ron quickly let go, letting Hermione have it. The two of them turned away, their faces beet red. Harry and Ginny laughed at the looks on their face.

The four of them took seats as Bill and Fleur cut the cake. Fred and George came over to them.

"Well wasn't that fun?" Fred asked sarcastically.

"The best time I've had in years." replied George. "So can we join you four at the table of love?"

"Very funny." said Ron, giving the twins a dirty look.

"Oh don't be so down, Ronnykins." said Fred, pinching Ron's cheek. "You caught the bouquet. You know what that means."

"Actually, I believe both Ron and Hermione caught the bouquet." said Fred, grinning. Both Ron and Hermione turned red again. "Well we'll leave you love birds alone."

"How's the search for your future soul mates coming?" Harry called to them.

Fred and George stopped and turned around.

"Well we've decided, why have settle for just one?" said Fred.

"That's right, the more the merrier." agreed George.

The two of them turned and walked off. Music started playing, and people began moving towards the dance floor. Harry stood up and turned to Ginny.

"Care to dance?" he asked.

Ginny raised her eyebrows at him. "I thought you didn't dance." she said.

"What gave you that idea?" Harry asked, confused.

"The Yule Ball. During the Triwizard Tournament." said Ginny.

"Oh…" muttered Harry, remembering he had said back then that he didn't dance. "Well… uh…"

Ginny smiled at him. "I'm just kidding. I'd love to."

She took his hand, and the two of them went out to the dance floor. Ron and Hermione were left alone. A few seconds went by before Hermione broke the silence.

"I remember the Yule Ball." she said. "Did you dance at all?"

"Who, me?" said Ron. "Er… no."

"Don't know how?" asked Hermione.

Ron's ears turned red. "Not really." he muttered

Hermione smiled at him. "I can teach you, if you want."

"Uh… maybe some other time."

Hermione stood up. "Ronald Weasley, dance with me!" she ordered.

She pulled Ron to his feet and dragged him to the dance floor.

The wedding celebration went into the night. For once all thoughts of the war were forgotten.


	6. Battle At the Burrow

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (A/N: Yay, reviews. I like reviews. Thank you to everyone that took the time to read my story and reviewed. I really appreciate it. And thank you Moongazer for the tips. I see what you mean.)

**Chapter 6: Battle At the Burrow**

Harry was woken up at the sound of explosions and people screaming. He got up and ran to the window. It was early and the sun was still down, but that did not hide the several dozen Death Eaters.

Harry jumped up, grabbed his wand, and started running downstairs. The wedding had been over for a couple hours and the aurors had already left. He should have known this would happen. Why would the Death Eaters show up at the wedding when there were several wizards there plus aurors protecting them. No, it would be better to show up several hours after it was over. Let the aurors leave, make people think it was safe. Why hadn't he thought of that? Now that it was happening it seemed so obvious.

Harry ran outside and narrowly missed being hit by a Killing Curse. The Death Eaters were sending Killing Curses everywhere. Harry pointed his wand at the nearest Death Eater and cried  _"Stupefy!"_

The Death Eater fell down stunned, but his curse had caught the attention of several other Death Eaters.

"There's Potter!" cried a female Death Eater. "Lets get him!"

Harry recognized that voice. It was Bellatrix Lestrange. She along with several other Death Eaters fired stunners at him. Harry disapparated and reappeared behind them. He fired his own stunner, hoping to hit Bellatrix, but not seeing because he immediately disapparated again.

He continued this process until the Death Eaters realized that this was getting them nowhere. They too disapparated.

Harry looked around to see who needed help. He saw Mr. Weasley was outnumbered five to one, and went to help. He stunned two of the Death Eaters and had to dodge as another stunner nearly hit him. Apparently the Death Eaters still had orders to take Harry alive.

"Harry get out of here!" cried Mr. Weasley.

"You can't fight them all!" shouted Harry. "Look out behind you!"

Mr. Weasley had looked away from the fight for too long. The three Death Eaters hit Mr. Weasley in the back with stunners. Mr. Weasley fell to the ground stunned. One of the Death Eaters pointed his wand at him and said _"Crucio!"_

"LEAVE HIM ALONE!" Harry shouted.

"Come with us Potter, and we will leave everyone else alone." said the Death Eaters.

" _Petrificus Totalus!"_  Harry cried, pointing his wand at the Death Eater. "You want me, come get me!"

Harry turned and ran away. The Death Eaters followed. Harry ran straight for another group of Death Eaters.

"Here I am!" he shouted.

The Death Eaters turned and shot stunners at him. Harry disaparated, and the stunners hit the Death Eaters that were chasing him. He reappeared in a tree, to take a moment to see exactly how bad the situation was. It was pretty bad. There were twice as many Death Eaters as there had been at Privet Drive. Harry looked down and saw Percy dueling with a Death Eater.

Harry jumped down and landed on the Death Eater's head.

"Harry?" cried Percy in surprise. "Where did you come from?"

"Percy, get to the ministry and get some aurors here NOW!" shouted Harry.

Percy nodded and disapparated.

Harry looked around to see who else needed help. He saw Ron and Hermione were dueling two other Death Eaters. Fred and George were taking on three others. And Ginny was dueling with three more. One of them cried  _"Expelliarmus!"_ Ginny had been busy blocking another spell, didn't block this one. Her wand flew out her hand, leaving her defenseless. Harry apparated behind them and cried  _"Sectumsempra!"_

Large bloody gashes appeared over the Death Eaters's backs.

"Thanks Harry." panted Ginny.

Before Harry could reply there was a loud  _bang_  from behind him. Fenrir Greyback fell to the ground, a foot away from Harry and Ginny.

The two of them looked around to see who had saved them. Fleur came forward, with her wand pointing at Greyback. Fury twisted every inch of her face, as her eyes showed pure hatred at the sight of the werewolf.

"YOU ARE ZE ONE WHO HURT MY HUZBAND!" she shouted.  _"AVADA KEDAVRA!"_

Harry and Ginny gasped Fleur performed the Killing Curse on Greyback. She threw an angry look at Harry and Ginny.

"Vhat are you looking at?" she cried.

She didn't wait for an answer though, because she immediately turned around, and went back to the battle.

"Ginny, here!" cried a voice.

She turned around and Fred threw her, her wand.

"Me and George have an idea." he said, and disapparated.

Harry grabbed Ginny's hand. "Come on lets get out of here." he said.

She nodded and the two of them took cover. Where was Percy with the aurors?

"Harry, Mum needs help!" cried Ginny.

Harry looked at Mrs. Weasley, and saw that she was standing over her stunned husband, surrounded by at least six Death Eaters.

"Stay here!" Harry said to Ginny.

He ran towards Mrs. Weasley. He pointed his wand at the alter and said " _Wingardium Leviosa!"_

The alter soared off the grounded and flew at the Death Eaters, just as they managed to stun Mrs. Weasley.

One of the Death Eaters pointed their wand at Mrs. Weasley and said  _"Avada Ked-"_

_Crash!_ The alter knocked all six Death Eaters over.

"Gotcha!" cried Harry.

"Wrong Potter, we got you." declared a voice.

Harry turned around. About 15 Death Eaters had their wands on him.

"Give it up." one of them said.

_Crack!_ Fred appeared behind them and threw something at their feet. The object exploded and the Death Eaters suddenly found themselves in a stuck swamp.

"Nice one!" cried Harry.

Fred gave him a thumbs up and vanished again. George suddenly reappeared on the other side of the yard. He began throwing things in the air. Harry recognized them as the flying sparks that they had used at Hogwarts when Umbridge was teaching.

"POTTER!" shouted a Death Eater.

Harry turned and saw one of the Death Eaters in the swamp hanging onto the side and pointing his wand at him.

"I have you now."

There was a series of  _cracks,_  and Percy along with several aurors arrived. They began launching spells all over the place. One of them blocked the curse that the Death Eater in the swamp fired at Harry.

Several of the Death Eaters began retreating, with the appearance of the aurors. But quite a few stayed behind.

"Harry!" cried Ginny running over to him.

"Ginny, I told you to stay where you were." said Harry. "They're still some Death Eaters."

"They're leaving." said Ginny.

"Not all of us!" cried a woman.

Harry turned around. There was Bellatrix Lestrange, with her wand pointed at Ginny.

" _Avada Kedavra!"_  she cried.

Time seemed to slow down as Harry watched green light erupted from Bellatrix's wand and made its way over to Ginny. Without hesitation, Harry jumped in front of her, fully prepared to take the blast.

But another figure jumped in front of Harry. The spell hit, and the person fell to the ground. Harry looked into the lifeless face of Percy Weasley.

Harry felt like the world vanished leaving only him and Percy behind. Flashes of all the good times the two of them had together, before Percy had sided with the ministry, flashed through Harry's mind.

Then everything came back. He saw Bellatrix standing there, laughing. Laughing, just as she did when she killed Sirius. Ginny stared in total shock at her brother laying on the ground.

Uncontrollable rage filled Harry. He pointed his wand at Bellatrix and cried  _"Avada Kedavra!"_

There was a flash of light, and Bellatrix was thrown backwards as the spell hit her. But after a few seconds, she stood up.

"So Potter." she said in a deadly whisper. "You have the guts to use the Killing Curse, eh. Well it's not just enough to use the curse, as I've told you at the ministry. You have to mean it. You have to truly want your opponent to die. Allow me to demonstrate."

She raised her wand.

" _AVADA KEDAVRA!"_ shouted Harry.

Bellatrix was once again hit by the Killing Curse. This time she did not get up.


	7. Godric's Hollow; A Family Reunion

**CHAPTER 7: Godric's Hollow; A Family Reunion**

Harry stood where he was, shocked by what he had done. He looked at Bellatrix's lifeless corpse. She lay just as still as Percy.

_Bang!_  Harry was suddenly thrown backwards. There was another loud bang and Ginny landed on top of him. Harry looked to see who had attacked them. Anger and hatred filled him as he saw Severus Snape standing just feet from them.

" _Crucio!"_  he cried

Both Harry and Ginny screamed in pain as the curse filled them. Then suddenly it stopped.

"Consider yourself lucky, Potter." sneered Snape. "The Dark Lord wants you and all three of your friends alive, or else I wouldn't hesitate to kill you now."

Through the aching of his body Harry heard what Snape said. And two of those words hurt him more than the Cruciatus Curse. 'All three of your friends,' Snape had said.  _'All three'_  of them. No! That meant that Voldemort wanted what Harry had been fearing all summer. He wanted, not just Harry, Ron, and Hermione, but now he wanted Ginny too. No, not her! Not Ginny!

"LEAVE THEM OUT OF THIS!" shouted Harry. "IF VOLDEMORT WANTS ME, WHY DOESN'T HE COME AND GET ME HIMSELF, INSTEAD OF SENDING YOU TO DO IT! WHY DOESN'T HE JUST KILL ME INSTEAD OF HURTING THOSE AROUND ME! WHY DON'T YOU JUST KILL ME, LIKE YOU KILLED MY PARENTS AND DUMBLEDORE, YOU DAMN COWARD!"

"I told you NOT to call me coward, Potter!" snapped Snape. "And you have no idea how much I would like to kill you. But the Dark Lord would be very angry if I did. So I shall settle with watching you die, at the hands of the Dark Lord."

"You can tell  _Tom_  that he will be the one to die at my hand!" Harry snapped back.

Snape laughed. "We shall see, Potter! We shall see!"

And with that, Snape vanished with the remaining Death Eaters.

What a disaster. Everything had been so wonderful, and now… now… it had all fallen apart. Mr. and Mrs. Weasley were in St. Mungo's, along with six other aurors. Percy was dead, and so were four more aurors.

Scrimgeour had declared that the battle was a major success. Twenty-three Death Eaters had been captured and five were dead.

Harry became more and more angry as he read the Daily Prophet. 'A major success.' Did the lives of those that had died mean nothing to Scrimgeour.

Harry crumpled up the paper and threw it across the room. It had been two days since the Death Eater attack, and things had gone from bad to worse. Nobody had talked much. But everyone spent their fair share of crying.

This was just too much to take in. The thing had happened that he always feared might if he and Ginny stayed together. Voldemort wanted her now. This is what Harry had been trying to avoid. This was the whole reason he had broken up with Ginny in the first place. But now, it had all been for nothing.

Harry felt that this had all been his fault. Would Percy still be alive if he hadn't attended the wedding? Would Mr. and Mrs. Weasley not be in the hospital? Would Voldemort not care about Ginny if he had never gotten back together with her?

" _No more."_  thought Harry.  _"I will not put the ones I love in danger anymore. Tomorrow I'm going to begin the hunt for the Horcruxes alone."_

(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)

Harry got up early the next morning. He made sure not to make a sound as he crept out of the house and into the front yard. Once he was far enough away he thought it would be safe to apparate without waking anyone up he stopped. He was about to disapparate when-

"Where do you think you're going?"

Harry had been in mid turn when someone spoke. Ron and Hermione came hurrying up behind him.

"We've been expecting this for some time." said Hermione sadly.

"Yeah, and we were prepared to stop you." said Ron.

Harry shook his head. "No guys, you're not going with me."

"Why not?" demanded Ron.

"I don't want you guys getting hurt." said Harry. "This is going to be too dangerous."

"So what!" said Ron angrily. "This is personal now. I want to make them pay for what they did to my brother."

"Harry, we told you at the funeral that we've had our chance to turn back." said Hermione. "Nothing has changed since then."

Harry stared at them. They were still really willing to go along with him. Even after everything that happened, they were here, standing by him. Ready to face almost certain death.

Harry felt the fight leave him. "Ok guys. If you're really willing to stand by me."

"Of course we are." said Hermione.

"Voldemort won't stand a chance against the three of us." said Ron.

"Four of us." said another voice.

Ginny came running up to them.

"Ginny no, go back!" said Harry. "You're not coming."

"Oh yes I am!" said Ginny fiercely. "I'm in this as much as you!"

But Harry was not giving in. "Ginny, I told you-"

"That you don't want to give Voldemort a reason to come after me." said Ginny, talking for him. "Harry, I was there. I heard what Snape said. Voldemort wants me just as much as he wants you three. I'm no safer here than I am with you. At least you can protect me. I am going with you. And I don't care what you say. I don't even care if you can apparate and I can't. I'll go after you on my broom if I have to. But I  _am_  coming!"

Harry didn't know what to say. She had a response to every reason Harry wanted her to stay behind. He looked to Ron and Hermione for help. They didn't give him any.

Harry sighed. He knew he had lost this fight.

"Ok Ginny. You win again." he said. "But you have a point about not being able to apparate. I guess you can side-along apparate until we can teach you."

Ginny's face brightened up. She threw her arms around Harry and kissed him. Ron looked like he was going to be sick.

When the two of them broke apart Harry said "Ok, we ready?"

The other three nodded. Harry smiled at them, tightened his grip on Ginny, and disapparated.

(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)

The four of them entered the graveyard of Godric's Hollow. Harry felt a chill go down his back. He was feeling more and more nervous with each step, but he kept going. Finally he came to what he was looking for. Two tombstones were side by side deep within the cemetery. The one on the left read the name  _JAMES POTTER,_  and the one on the right read  _LILY POTTER._

Harry felt tears creep into his eyes as he stared at his parent's graves. He suddenly heard the voices he heard every time a dementer came near him.

" _Lily, take Harry and go! It's him!"_

Harry blinked back tears, but couldn't block out the voices he was hearing.

" _Not Harry, please, no, take me, kill me instead!"_

He couldn't help it anymore. The tears fell freely down his cheeks.

" _Stand aside, you silly girl!"_

Harry felt like he was going to be sick. He didn't want his friends seeing him like this.

"Do you… do you guys think… you can give me some… some time alone?" he asked.

"Oh sure, no problem." said Ron.

The three of them left, leaving Harry with his parents. Harry waited until they were far enough away before he stopped holding back the tears. The next thing he knew, he was on his knees crying his eyes out. He hadn't been this close to his parents in 16 years. He reached out and touched the two graves.

"Hi Mum." he said quietly. "Hi Dad."

He wandered if they could hear him. There was so much he wanted to tell them. About how it had felt when he discovered he was a wizard. About how everyone thought he was the heir of Slytherin. How he had learned the truth about Sirius. How he witnessed Voldemort return. The next thing he knew, he was telling them. He told them everything that had happened to him. From the search for the Sorcerer's Stone to the search for the Horcruxes. Everything. The whole time crying his eyes out.

"Do you think he's ok?" asked Ron.

"He will be." said Hermione.

"Well I'm worried." Ron said, looking back at Harry. "He's been there over an hour."

"Ron you prat! Don't you know how hard this is for him?" snapped Ginny. "This is the first time he's been with his parents in years. He probably has so much to tell them."

"Well it's not like they can hear him."

"RON!" gasped Hermione. "How can you be so careless. Wouldn't you like to say a few things to Percy, even if he couldn't hear you!"

A pained look came over Ron's face. Hermione immediately regretted what she said.

"Oh Ron, I'm sorry."

"No, don't be." said Ron. "You're right. Both you and Ginny. I'm such a prat."

Tears started pouring down Hermione's face. "No, you're not. I'm sorry, I shouldn't have said that. This is all just so much to deal with."

"I know what you mean." said Ron, who too began crying. "It's like, all this is a bad dream that we can't wake up from. And it won't end until either all of us, or Voldemort is dead."

"Oh Ron!" cried Hermione, throwing her arms around him.

Ginny stared, as the two of them stood there crying and hugging each other.

"Uh… did I miss something?"

All three of them turned and saw that Harry had joined them. His eyes were all puffy, indicating that he had been crying. Ron and Hermione broke apart.

"You alright, mate?" asked Ron, rubbing his eyes.

Harry nodded. "Yeah, I guess so."

They were silent for a moment. Finally Ginny broke the silence. "So, what do we do now?"

Harry looked at her. "Well I thought we would spend the day practicing."

The three of them seemed surprised.

"Practicing what?" asked Ginny.

Harry smiled. "Well, I thought we would teach you how apparate."

"But Harry," gasped Hermione. "We're not allowed to teach that."

"Don't be such a suck up." said Ginny excitedly. "We're living a bit outside the law for awhile."

"That's right." said Harry. "And that's not the only thing 'outside the law' we'll be learning. We're also going to practice the Unforgivable Curses."

There were shocked gasps from his three friends.

"But Harry," said Hermione again. "They're illegal."

"I know." said Harry. "But we're going to be facing them. So we'll need to learn how to use them, as well as defend against them."

Everyone was quiet. Finally Ron said "Alright, when do we start?"

"Right now." said Harry pulling out his wand.

(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)

The day went by in a series of several amusing ways. First Harry thought it would be best to start with trying to resist the Imperius Curse. Hermione began to take a resistance very quickly. Ginny took several more tries, but soon got the hang of it. Ron on the other hand, had the most trouble. Close to the end of the lesson he managed to half resist the curse, which mostly ended up with him getting hurt. When Ginny ordered Ron to hang himself from a tree by his underpants, Harry thought it was best to stop for the day.

Next they started with Ginny's apparating lessons. Hermione was the one that took over this lesson. Halfway through, Ginny managed to splinch herself. However, she failed to find out what was so funny about having herself separated by the chest down.

She was a fast learner though. By the end of the day she was still splinching, but the pieces she left behind became smaller and smaller, until all she ended up leaving behind was an ear.

"Wow Ginny, I think you could give Hermione a run for her money." said Ron.

Hermione glared at him.

"Alright, I think that's enough for today." said Harry. "What do you say we hit the hay?"

Hay was nowhere near what they were sleeping in. They were going to spend the night in a small tent, that's inside was almost as big as the Gryffindor common room back at Hogwarts.

"So about these… Horcruxes." said Ginny. "What exactly are we supposed to be looking for?"

Harry, Ron, and Hermione looked at Ginny, realizing that they had not really explained to her in full detail exactly what they were looking for.

"Well, I guess it's best to start at the beginning." said Harry. "Horcrux is a term used to describe an item in which someone has placed a piece of their soul in."

"A person has what?" exclaimed Ginny.

"Placed a piece of their soul." repeated Harry.

"What does that mean?" Ginny asked.

"Well you see, when someone kills another person for no reason, they tear they're soul apart." Harry explained. "Then they take a torn portion of their soul and seal it away."

"People can tear their souls?" gasped Ginny in shock. There was more disgust in her voice than curiosity.

"Yes. It's kind of hard to explain, but once the soul is damaged, a person uses some sort of spell that allows them to remove a piece of the broken soul and put it into something. This way, even if the person's body is destroyed, the Horcrux keeps them alive. But they no longer have a body. They're nothing more than a life force. This is what happened to Voldemort, when he attacked me 16 years ago. But then there's a special potion that will return them to their body. As Voldemort has done."

"So you're telling me," said Ginny, trying to figure this out. "That Voldemort created a Horcrux, and he can't die until it's destroyed!"

"Well… yes, and no." said Harry. "Voldemort can't die until the Horcruxes are destroyed, but he didn't create one or two, he created six."

"Six Horcruxes!" gasped Ginny in disgust.

"Yup, he separated his soul into seven pieces."

Ginny seemed outraged at what Harry was telling her, and he couldn't blame her.

"So what's that mean?" she asked. "If we do manage to kill Voldemort, will he be missing limbs in the next life, or something?"

Harry laughed. "No, nothing like that. You see, splitting your soul happens when you kill in cold blood. It is an act of supreme evil. Once you kill a person, you leave a piece of your formal self behind. The innocence you once had is gone. The more you kill, the more you fall into darkness. You slowly loose yourself until you become corrupted by evil. When you make a Horcrux, you seal away the person you once were. And once you separate that piece of you, there's no going back. You basically become two separate people. Voldemort separated himself constantly. He kept sealing away his formal self and left nothing but the evil and hatred in his heart. This is why he looks so inhuman. With his soul severed and separated, his outer has changed to match his inner."

"My God." whispered Ginny. "How could anyone… I think I'm going to be sick. Harry, how are you going to stop someone like that?"

Harry pulled her into a hug. "I don't know. It seems hopeless. But I won't stop until either he is dead, or I am."

"Well, I believe in you." she whispered. "I'll help you do whatever you have to do. But damn, six Horcruxes. How are we going to find them?"

"Actually Ginny, there's only four."

Ginny looked up at him.

"It's true. Dumbledore found and destroyed one, and I destroyed another. Remember Riddle's diary?"

A shock expression came over Ginny's face. "That thing was a Horcrux! Ew! I can't believe I even touched it, let alone consider it a friend."

"It's ok Ginny." Harry reassured her. "If it wasn't for you, Dumbledore might not have never figured out that Voldemort was using Horcruxes. But thanks to you, only four Horcruxes remain."

"Do you know what they are?"

Harry nodded. "Yes. Or at least somewhat. There's Slytherin's locket, Hufflepuff's cup, Voldemort's snake Nagini, and either something of Gryffindor's or Ravenclaw's."

"Damn." gasped Ginny.

"Exactly what I thought." said Harry. "At least we know what three of them are. Dumbledore doesn't think anything of Ravenclaw's remains, and he said he's confidant that nothing but Gryffindor's sword is left, and that hasn't been touched."

There was a sharp intake of breath.

"Hermione, you ok?" asked Ron.

"You said something of Gryffindor's or Ravenclaw's?" asked Hermione.

"Yeah, why?"

Hermione was silent a few seconds before answering. "I know what a Horcrux is."

Harry, Ron, and Ginny all jumped up, screaming "WHAT?"

"The Sorting Hat told us, in our fourth year. Well, your third, Ginny. But don't you remember? It was in the song it sang.  _'How to pick the worthy ones, when they were dead and gone? 'Twas Gryffindor who found the way, he whipped me off his head, the founders put some brains in me, so I could choose instead!'"_

"You remembered all that?" gasped Ron.

"Oh Ron, weren't you listening?" Hermione said impatiently. "There  _is_  another item of Gryffindor's, besides the sword.  _'Gryffindor whipped me off his head.'_  The Sorting Hat belonged to Gryffindor!"

Harry's eyes widened as he realized what Hermione was saying.

"Wait!" he said. "Wait. If the Sorting Hat was Gryffindor's, and Voldemort made a Horcrux out of either something of Ravenclaw's or Gryffindor's, and there is nothing left of Ravenclaw's, but just two things left of Gryffindor's, and the sword was never touched by Voldemort. Then… that means…"

Hermione nodded. "Yup. The Sorting Hat is a Horcrux."


	8. A Hat's History Lesson

**Chapter 8: A Hat's History Lesson**

Harry still couldn't believe that there had been a Horcrux up at the school all this time. And it was the Sorting Hat, of all things.

" _How could Dumbledore not have realized it?"_  thought Harry, as he, Ron, Hermione, and Ginny made their way up the road to Hogwarts.

When the gate came up, they four of them realized it was magically locked.

"Uh, what now?" asked Ron.

"Don't worry, I got this." Harry said, pulling out his wand. "Tonks did it last year.  _Expecto Patronum!"_

The silver stag erupted from the end of his wand and rushed up towards the castle.

"Lets just hope not everyone went to bed." said Harry.

Luckily, not everyone had. Five minutes later someone came walking down the path.

"Who goes there?" they called.

"Harry Potter, Ron and Ginny Weasley, and Hermione Granger, requesting permission to speak to the headmistress!" Harry called back.

"Harry Potter, eh." said the person, coming closer. It was Argus Filch, the caretaker. "You four are three days late. What happened?"

Harry groaned, realizing that Filch was going to be of no help. "Can we please come in to see Professor McGonagall?"

"Everyone is in bed, Potter." sneered Filch. "Looks like you'll have to spend the night out here."

"What's goin' on here?" came a loud voice.

All five of them jumped. The large form of Hagrid came into the light of Filch's lamp.

"Hagrid!" cried Harry.

"Harry?" said Hagrid. "Ron, Hermione, Ginny? What are yeh doin' out here?"

"Filch won't let us in." said Hermione.

"Oh, he won', will he?" said Hagrid, glaring at Filch. "Stand aside."

"You know the rules." said Filch.

"Rules nothin'. I'm a teacher." growled Hagrid, unlocking the gate. "Yeh talk to us if yeh gonna leave someone out here all night."

The four of them went inside, leaving a sour looking Filch behind.

"So, how come yeh four weren' here?" asked Hagrid. "Yeh had me worried sick."

"We're not staying, Hagrid." said Harry. "We just came to see McGonagall."

"Oh." replied Hagrid, looking sad. "Well, I know yeh four know wha you're doin'. I trust yeh. Well don' forget ter say good bye when yeh leave."

"We won't." said Ginny. "Oh, and Hagrid, don't forget to check if we're Death Eaters next time."

Hagrid looked embarrassed. "Oh, righ', I'll di tha', good nigh' then." He said turning away.

About three seconds later, Harry realized they were forgetting something.

"Oh Hagrid, wait!" he called. "We don't know the password."

"Password? Oh, righ', to McGonagall's room." said Hagrid. "Yeah, tha' would help. Well the password is  _'Bat Wing'."_

"Right,  _'Bat wing.'_  Thanks." said Harry.

The four of them made their way to McGonagall's, formerly Dumbledore's, office. Along the way they ran into none other than Peeves the Poltergeist.

"Oh, ho! Looky here!" cried Peeves. "It's Potty and his little friends."

"Get lost Peeves!" snapped Harry.

"Uh, oh. Someone is in a bad mood." laughed Peeves.

"We're in no mood for your games tonight. Nor any night for that matter." said Ginny.

Peeves didn't seem to take a hint as he rounded on Ginny.

"How cute." said Peeves. "The Weasel girl is defending her boyfriend."

"Get out of here!" Harry yelled.

" _Potty and Weasel, sitting in a tree. K-I-S-S-I-N-"_

_Bang!_  It happened so fast no one barely saw anything. Ginny had her wand pointing at Peeves, who was now covered in what looked like yellowish green blobs, with bat wings.

Peeves floated away, swearing angrily, while at the same time trying to fight off the flying bogeys.

Harry, Ron, and Hermione stared at Ginny, who had a smug look on her face.

"What?" she asked innocently.

"That was your Bat Bogey hex, wasn't it?" asked Harry.

Ginny smiled at him. "The very one I'm so famous for." she replied.

The four of them laughed as they approached the stone gargoyle. Harry gave the password, and the gargoyle leapt aside, allowing them to pass.

"Enter." said McGonagall, when Harry knocked on the door.

The four of them went inside.

"Mr. Potter? What are you doing here?" said McGonagall in surprise. "Mr. Weasley, Miss Granger, Miss Weasley, you too? Where have you been these past three days?"

"We're actually not coming back this year." said Hermione.

"Not coming back?"

"That's right." replied Harry. "We're here to…"

He trailed off. He couldn't exactly say we're here to destroy the Sorting Hat.

"Ask Dumbledore a few questions." he invented.

McGonagall seemed confused at first, but then her eyes widened in understanding. She looked at the portrait of Dumbledore, who winked at her.

"Very well." she said. "I'll wait outside."

McGonagall left the room, leaving Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Ginny alone with Dumbledore's portrait, and all the other former headmasters.

"Well Harry, what can I do for you?" Dumbledore asked.

"Actually Professor, we really came her to see the Sorting Hat." said Harry.

He expected Dumbledore to question him, but he merely pointed into the other room.

"Right this way."

The four of them went into the other room. Dumbledore followed them, traveling through other portraits. The Sorting Hat looked down at them. Or at least, that's what it seemed to be doing. It had no eyes.

"Hello Potter." The Sorting Hat said. "Long time no see."

Harry glared at the hat. "It's over. I know what you are."

"Well, so does everyone." laughed the Sorting Hat. "It's pretty obvious."

"That's not what I meant." Harry said impatiently. "I mean, I know that you're a Horcrux. The Gryffindor Horcrux."

The rip in the hat, that served as a mouth smiled. "I was wondering when this would come up. Tell me, Miss Granger, did you think of this?"

"Yes." said Hermione. "But I'm surprised Dumbledore didn't."

The Sorting Hat laughed. "As a matter of fact, he did. Just a few days before him and Potter here went in search of the locket. However, he became convinced that I was not a Horcrux."

"Oh really." said Harry. "And why is that?"

"Why indeed?" said the Sorting Hat. "Well let me ask you something. If I was a Horcrux, why would I have granted your wish not to be put in Slytherin? And why would I also have helped you that day in the Chamber of Secrets, when you were in danger of becoming basilisk chow?"

Harry didn't have an answer for this. Why would the Sorting Hat have helped him if he was infected with Voldemort's soul?

The Sorting Hat seemed to know what Harry was thinking, because it said "Exactly. But don't feel so down. It was a good try in thinking I'm a Horcrux. But I can safely, and thankfully, say I'm not. However, I do believe it is time for a little history lesson about you. That is, of course, if it is alright with you, Albus."

Dumbledore looked at the Sorting Hat, then at Harry, then back to the Sorting Hat. He sighed and nodded.

"Right then, I believe that it is time to truly realize who you are." said the Sorting Hat.

Harry gave the hat a questioning look. "What do you mean, who I really am?"

The Sorting Hat took a deep breath, preparing for a long conversation. "Do you remember after you defeated the basilisk, your little chat with Albus?"

Harry cringed up his face, trying to remember. It had been several years ago that they had, had that conversation, and they had spoken about a lot of things too.

Almost as if the Sorting Hat read his mind it said "I meant about which house you belong in. What proof did he give you?"

This Harry remembered. "He showed me the sword you gave me. He told me only a true Gryffindor could have pulled that out of the hat."

The Sorting Hat snorted at being addressed as 'the hat'. "Yes, that's true. But I'm not sure you understood what that truly meant."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, that when Albus said, only a true Gryffindor could have pulled that out of me, he meant only a  _true_  Gryffindor could have pulled that out of me."

Harry's mouth dropped opened, as he realized what the Sorting Hat was saying. He looked at his friends and saw that they were just as shocked as he was.

"No, no, that's not possible." said Harry. "I couldn't… I can't be…"

"Why can't you be?" asked the Sorting Hat. "In case you've forgotten, I've once belonged to Gryffindor himself. I've seen his bloodline grow."

Harry shook his head. "No, it's not possible."

The Sorting Hat laughed. "Alright then Potter, answer me this. When your parent's went into hiding, where did they go?"

"Godric's Hollow." said Harry. "Everyone knows that."

"Yes well, didn't that name ring any bells?" asked the Sorting Hat.  _"Godric's_  Hollow. Your parents returned to the very birth place of your ancestor, Godric Gryffindor."

Harry still couldn't believe what he was hearing. The Sorting Hat could tell he was having trouble taking this in.

"Godric Gryffindor had only one son." explained the Sorting Hat. "His son had two daughters. One of them named Eleanor Gryffindor, married a man named Samuel Potter. And thus brought the Gryffindor and Potter bloodlines together."

It took a moment for this to sink in. Was he, Harry James Potter, really related to Godric Gryffindor. It was possible. Gryffindor did live over 1,000 years ago. Then he remembered what Hermione had said when everyone thought he was the heir of Slytherin. She had said that Salazar Slytherin lived so long ago, that Harry just might very well be related to him. If this was true of Slytherin, why couldn't it be true with Gryffindor?

"I've always said that I could see Slytherin in you." said the Sorting Hat, bring Harry from his thoughts. "And even though you would have done well in Slytherin, I always intended to put you in Gryffindor."

"But wait!" Harry cried suddenly. "You said Godric Gryffindor had two granddaughters. What happened to the other one?"

The Sorting Hat smiled again. "Ah, now this is where it gets interesting. Yes, the second one, Dominique Gryffindor, ended up marring a man named Marcus Dumbledore."

Marcus Dumbledore. The name hung in mid air for a minute. Harry suddenly rounded on Dumbledore.

"Does this mean what I think it means?" he cried, with a mixture of several emotions in his voice.

Dumbledore sighed. "Harry, Harry, I am sorry for all this secrecy for so long. But now that it's all finally coming out into the open, I don't really know what to say to you."

Harry started to feel angry. "What is that supposed to mean?"

"Harry, I've always said that our relationship was always more than headmaster and student. Why do you think I cared for you above all other students?"

"So you knew!" shouted Harry. "Our bloodline goes all the way back to Godric Gryffindor himself, and you knew all along! Why didn't you ever tell me?"

Dumbledore sighed again. "Harry, I have said it many times. I have always cared for your happiness, rather than letting you know what you needed to know. An old man's mistake. As I have said before."

"Always cared for my happiness!" cried Harry, nearly laughing. "Then why send me to live with the Dursleys for all those years? Why send me back every summer? Why couldn't I have lived with you? I loved you like we were family. And now I find out that we really are family. How could you do this to me?"

Dumbledore seemed like he was close to tears. "I was doing what I felt was best for you. It was for your own protection. As I have explained to you, when I placed you in your aunt's care, she sealed the final magical protection your mother left on you. True, I could have taken you in, and raised you myself, but I could not provide absolute protection. Though Voldemort was gone, his followers were still at large. I did what I felt was best."

This did not make Harry feel any better. In fact, it made him angrier. "So even if Sirius did have his name cleared four years ago, you still would have had me return to the Dursleys?"

"Yes Harry, I would have."

Harry glared at Dumbledore for a moment, then collapsed into a chair. "All this time. You never told me. Why didn't you tell me?"

"I'm afraid that that brings us further into your family's history." said the Sorting Hat.

Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Ginny all jumped. They had all forgotten about the Sorting Hat.

"Time to fill in another piece of the puzzle." it said. "As you very well know, Godric Gryffindor, Salazar Slytherin, Rowena Ravenclaw, and Helga Hufflepuff, were the greatest witches and wizards of the time. Now tell me, what are the odds of the four greatest witches and wizards just happening to be friends, and starting a school together? I would say as long as two dementors away from Azkaban just happening to find a wizard. Just as your little incident two years ago, Potter, this was not an accident. No, the four of them were cousins. Each one a direct descendant of Merlin himself."

The Sorting Hat let this sink in.

"No way!" exclaimed Ron. "That's not possible!"

"Excuse me," said the Sorting Hat. "But were you there? I think not. But let me assure you, they were indeed cousins."

"But what about Slytherin?" Hermione asked. "He was a Parselmouth. If he was a descendant of Merlin, and so were the other three founders, then wouldn't they all have been Parselmouths?"

"Yes, Miss Granger, they would have." replied the Sorting Hat. "However, Merlin was not a Parselmouth. Slytherin did not inherit his power to speak to snakes from him. He received it from another. His great grandmother married a man named Fredrick Slytherin. He was the one Salazar Slytherin received the ability to talk to snakes, as well as his last name."

Harry was very quiet. He was lost deep in thought. The founders of Hogwarts were cousins. Each one of them a descendant of Merlin. And he was a descendant of Gryffindor. It all seemed so strange. Five years ago, the whole school thought that he was a descendant of Slytherin. Now he finds out that he's not a descendant of Slytherin, but is still related to him. He suddenly remembered what Sirius had told him years ago, when they were looking at the Black Family Tree.  _'The pure-blood families are all interrelated. If you're only going to let your sons and daughters marry purebloods your choice is very limited.'_  If this was true, and his father was pure-blood, then everything the Sorting Hat had said could easily be true.

Harry suddenly threw his head back and began laughing hysterically. His three friends stared at him, trying to figure out what was so funny.

"May I ask what's so funny?" Dumbledore asked calmly.

Harry stopped laughing. "Why nothing 'Uncle Albus'. I find nothing funny about any of this. I just find it extremely ironic. Both Gryffindor and Slytherin are direct descendants of Merlin. You and me are direct descendants of Gryffindor. Voldemort is a direct descendant of Slytherin. This would make Voldemort related to us as well."

There were shocked gasps from Ron, Hermione, and Ginny. All the other portraits were muttering to each other. Dumbledore frowned.

"Yes, Harry. I'm afraid it does."

"Another thing you never told me." said Harry. "Why?"

"I was afraid it would effect your decision to face him." replied Dumbledore. "With me gone, only the Dursleys and Voldemort are your remaining relatives. You and Voldemort are the last descendants of Merlin. The Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw bloodline has already ended years ago. You are the final descendant of Gryffindor, and Voldemort is the final descendant of Slytherin. I feared your decision to kill Voldemort would change, knowing that he is your only other living relative; however so distantly. Once again, an old man's-"

"Don't say mistake!" Harry interrupted. "How could you think that this would change anything? If the blood of Merlin flows through each of our veins, then so be it! As far as I'm concerned, Voldemort is  _not_  related to me! He may have been once, but once Tom Riddle became Lord Voldemort, there was no longer any family bond between us!"

Dumbledore was quiet for a moment. Finally he said "Harry, I am truly sorry for all this. It seems you have been ready to hear this for several years. I should have told you much sooner."

Harry didn't say anything. He was slowly calming down.

"Does Voldemort know?" he asked, not looking at Dumbledore.

"I believe I can answer that." said the Sorting Hat. "I have a memory to show you, that I haven't revealed to anyone. Not even Albus."

Harry stared at the Sorting Hat. "Whose memory?"

"Yours, Potter." replied the Sorting Hat. "As you know, I have the ability to look into people's minds. I see their thoughts and memories. Even the ones long forgotten. And I have one very important memory to show you. Please put me on."

Harry continued to stare at the Sorting Hat. He looked at Dumbledore, who was looking curiously from Harry to the Sorting Hat. Finally, Harry walked over to the hat, picked it up, and put it on.


	9. A Blast From the Past

**Chapter 9: A Blast From the Past**

At first all Harry could see was the inside of the hat. But suddenly he felt like he was sucked up into the hat. Everything went dark. There was a flash of light. And Harry was suddenly in a different room. It was unfamiliar. Harry didn't remember ever being here. But then he remembered that the Sorting Hat had said that he could see memories long forgotten. So Harry figured that this was probably a memory he had forgotten.

Harry tried to turn his head to look around, but couldn't move. He had no control of his body. Then suddenly someone began crying. It sounded like a baby. A moment later, Harry realized that the crying was coming from his own mouth.

The door burst open and someone picked him out of his crib. His crib?

"Shh. Shh." said a woman. "What's wrong, sweetie?"

Harry's head uncontrollably turned to look at the woman. He would have gasped if he had any control over his mouth, as he looked into the face of his long dead mother.

" _Mum?"_  thought Harry.

"It's ok, I'm here." said Lily.

Harry suddenly understood what was happening. This was a memory from when his parents were still alive. From when Harry was a baby. It was different than experiencing a memory from a Pensieve though. He was witnessing the memory from his own point of view. This was why he had no control over his infant self's body.

Harry felt completely at peace, as his mother rocked him. It was the first time he was actually with her. Sure it was a memory, but Harry felt like he was actually experiencing what was happening. He wanted to stay in his mother's arms forever. To just be held by her. Something Voldemort had taken from him.

The door suddenly burst open. Harry's head turned uncontrollably towards the door. He received another shock as he saw who it was. James Potter had just entered the house, looking terrified. He closed the door and magically locked it.

"James!" gasped Lily. "What's wrong?"

James looked at her with fear in his eyes. "Lily, take Harry and go! It's him!"

Lily's eyes widened with fear. "What? But how?"

"Go!" cried James. "Run! I'll hold him off!"

"But-"

"GO!"

Lily hesitated a moment before turning away. Harry's vision turned with his body, but he still heard the door burst open. Lily ran into the other room. There was a back door. She grabbed the handle and pulled it open.

There stood Severus Snape, with his wand pointing at her. A smaller person was behind him. Harry immediately recognized the one who betrayed his parents.

"Severus!" gasped Lily. "Peter!"

Wormtail smiled. "Hello Lily."

"You… you told." Lily whispered.

"Of course." Wormtail said.

"Why?"

"I have a right to do what's best for me." said Wormtail, smiling more broadly.

"Shut up!" ordered Snape. "You've done your part."

Wormtail gave Snape a dirty look, but didn't say anything. Lily backed up, as Snape advanced on her.

"Well now, isn't this pleasant?" said Snape. "You have no idea how long I've been looking forward to this, you filthy mudblood."

Hatred filled Harry. He had already hated Snape before, but now as he watched him prevent his mother from escaping, the hatred doubled.

"The Dark Lord will be pleased that you did not get away." sneered Snape. "Maybe he'll give me the pleasure of killing you."

Lily looked at Wormtail. "Peter, how could you have betrayed us like this?"

"The Dark Lord can offer me so much more." replied Wormtail. "He will reward me greatly, once he finishes off your blood traitor of a husband."

_Bang!_ The door exploded.

"Ah, perfect timing." said Wormtail.

Voldemort entered the room. His hood was up, covering his face, but his red eyes shined through the shadows.

"Well done, Severus." said Voldemort. "You've done well."

""Thank you, my lord." said Snape.

Voldemort turned to Lily, and smiled.

"What… what did you do to James?" she asked in a terrified voice.

Voldemort laughed. He reached into his robes and pulled out a wand that looked remarkably like James. He threw it at Lily's feet.

"No." whispered Lily.

"Yes." sneered Voldemort. "He fought well, but it was really no contest."

Lily began crying. Harry realized that tears were falling down his infant self's cheeks too.

"Quit your sniveling." snapped Voldemort. "I didn't come here for you. I came here for the child."

Lily looked up at Voldemort. "What? What do you want with Harry?"

"That's not your concern." replied Voldemort. "Hand him over and I will let you leave unharmed."

Lily held Harry closer to her chest and backed up into a corner.

"No." she said.

Voldemort laughed. "How amusing. They say nothing is more dangerous than a mother defending her child. But I beg to differ. Now give him to me."

Lily placed Harry behind her, and blocked him with her body.

"No." she said again. "Not Harry, please not Harry!"

"Stand aside, you silly girl." hissed Voldemort.

"Not Harry, please, no, take me, kill me instead!"

Voldemort began laughing. "Now isn't this cute. You're really willing to die for him. How sweet. But I don't want you. I want the child. Now, stand aside!"

"NO!" screamed Lily.

"You should do what he says." said Wormtail.

"Silence!" snapped Voldemort. "Do not speak unless you are spoken to!" He turned back to Lily. "I don't have time for this." He pointed his wand at her. "I'll give you to the count of three. Then you die. One…"

Lily began sobbing, but she did not move.

"Two…"

Harry didn't want to watch. He knew what was coming, and he didn't want to see it. Yet his infant self continued to watch, forcing Harry to witness what was about to happen.

"Three!"

"NOOO!" Lily screamed.

There was a flash of green light. Harry couldn't hear the spell Voldemort had used, but he still recognized the Killing Curse.

Harry silently screamed, as he watched his mother's body slowly fall to the floor. She remained motionless by Voldemort's feet. Snape and Wormtail were laughing in the corner, but Harry took no notice. His full attention was on his mother's lifeless corpse.

Voldemort then walked over his mother's body. No, he walked on it, like it was nothing more than a piece of the floor. He looked down at baby Harry, who looked back.

The two looked into each other's eyes for a moment, then Voldemort said "Severus, I have a mission for you."

"Yes, my lord." said Snape with a smile.

"I want you to turn yourself in." Voldemort said, not taking his eyes off Harry.

Snape blinked in surprise. "Sir, I don't understand."

"I want you to go to Dumbledore." Voldemort explained. "Tell him you did not know that the Prophecy was referring to the Potter's, and that you never meant them harm."

"My lord," said Wormtail, forgetting he was not supposed to talk. "I do not believe Dumbledore will buy that. I have hung out with James for years. He and Severus always hated each other."

"I told you not to speak!" hissed Voldemort. "But you do have a point. Very well. Severus, tell him that you never meant the girl any harm. Tell him how she was always nice to you, when no one else was. Even show him that memory of the time she stood up for you when James and his friends were teasing you. In fact, tell him that you loved her. The old man always was a sucker for love. He is far too trusting, and it will lead to his downfall."

"As you wish, my lord." said Snape. He gave Lily's body a disgusted look. "To think I have to pretend to be in love with that." To Harry's horror, Snape kicked his mother's body. "It makes me sick." He spat on Lily's corpse. Anger filled Harry. He wanted to lash out at Snape and strangle him with his bare hands, but could not.

"Very good." said Voldemort. "Now then, I want you to be a spy for them. Give them information. Not much, but enough to satisfy them. Join the Order of the Phoenix, and report back to me everything that happens. I also want you to get a job at Hogwarts. You shall be the Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher. The position Dumbledore refused to give me. I shall influence the students through you."

"As you wish." said Snape again.

"You must not be caught." warned Voldemort. "Do you understand? Do what you must to keep your cover. When the time is right, I want you to kill Dumbledore. Kill his brother as well. But not until I give you the order to do so. Have I made myself clear?"

"Yes, my lord."

"Good. Then go now."

"What about me, my lord?" asked Wormtail. "I might be suspected of betraying Lily and James."

"Ah yes, Wormtail." sneered Voldemort. "I almost forgot. Severus, tell the Order that… Sirius Black was the spy. He would be the perfect candidate. Poor Sirius, he'll be charged with betraying his best friend."

Snape laughed and vanished.

Voldemort continued to look at Harry. He seemed to have forgotten all about Wormtail, or he paid him absolutely no attention.

"So." hissed Voldemort quietly. "Harry Potter. You are the one with the power to destroy me. Me, the great Lord Voldemort, is to be defeated by a child. What is so special about you? You may be a descendant of Godric Gryffindor, but I am a descendant of Salazar Slytherin. The greatest of the four founders. My blood is superior to yours, and yet you are to defeat me. What powers could a child possibly have? Whatever they may be, they shall be mine."

Voldemort raised his wand to his forehead. His scarlet eyes rolled up into his head, leaving the blood red color, that was once the whites of his eyes, behind. He inhaled and exhaled deeply. He threw his head back, and held his wand up over his mouth.

" _Horcruxio!"_  hissed Voldemort.

A second later, a small glowing orb floated out of Voldemort's open mouth. Wormtail gasped, but Voldemort did not seem to notice. Then what looked like an arm, made of red light, came out of the end of Voldemort's wand. The hand closed over the glowing orb. The arm began going back inside the wand. When it reached the wrist, the red hand turned black, the glowing orb vanishing inside. It was now as if a puff of black mist was hovering at the end of Voldemort's wand.

Voldemort's eyes rolled back down. He fixed them on Harry.

"ENTER!" cried Voldemort.

Fear gripped Harry as he realized what was happening. Voldemort had found something of Gryffindor's. He was planning on making Harry the Horcrux. The powers Harry possessed would be his.

The black mist began to slowly make its way towards Harry. It stretched out and began slithering towards Harry like a snake. At the front of the snake-like mist, there was a shape that had Voldemort's head and his terrible features.

The mist came closer and closer to Harry, then it made contact. It started crawling inside Harry's chest. Harry felt a strange sensation come over him. He felt Voldemort fill him up. Slowly beginning to take over his body. Contaminating his very soul with his own. Then suddenly, it stopped. He felt the darkness leave him. It retreated very quickly back out of his body. The entire snake-like mist left him. It retreated back to Voldemort's wand, and went inside. Voldemort's Horcrux spell went  _inside_  his own wand. The next closest thing.

"WHAT'S THIS?" cried Voldemort. He didn't seem to realize or care that a piece of his soul had just entered his own wand, becoming the sixth Horcrux. "How can this be? What powers do you have that can stop my spells? Perhaps there is more to this than there appears."

There was something in his voice that Harry thought sounded like fear.

"Why don't you just kill him?" suggested Wormtail.

"SILENCE!" cried Voldemort. "Wormtail, you will never speak a word of this to anyone. And you, Harry Potter, will not be a danger to me. Not now, not ever!  _Avada Kedavra!"_

There was a flash of green light. The Killing Curse came at Harry, just as it had came at his mother. But Harry was not afraid. He knew what would happen. His mother had died to protect him, and she did not die in vain. She had given Harry protection that Voldemort did not know of, nor could he ever understand. It had saved Harry from becoming possessed, and it would save him from being killed.

The spell hit Harry in the forehead with such force, that it cut his head open, leaving a cut in the shape of a bolt of lightning. But the spell brought no further damage than this. But that didn't stop the spell from coming. The spell entered Harry's lightning shaped cut, and was held there. Voldemort stopped laughing when he realized that Harry was still alive.

"What?" gasped Voldemort.

Then suddenly, just as the Horcrux spell had exited his body, the Killing Curse erupted from Harry's head in one huge blast. Voldemort's eyes widened with surprise, as the spell came back at him. He screamed in pain as his body was destroyed. But he did not die. His life force remained, but his entire body had been destroyed.

Most of the house came crashing down as the spell consumed everything. All that was left of Voldemort was his wand, that fell to the floor. The light had vanished, and Harry blinked in surprise. His vision had blurred. It became the way it always was when he took off his glasses. The light had been too intense for his infant self's eyes.

Wormtail slowly made his way over to where Voldemort had been moments before. He picked up Voldemort's wand.

"Master…" muttered Wormtail.

He looked at Harry, and began backing away. Then he turned around and ran out of the destroyed house.

Then everything went black. It took Harry a moment to realize that the memory had ended and he was once again looking at the inside of the Sorting Hat. He pulled it off his head. He now understood everything that had happened.

"You didn't show this to anyone?" said Harry quietly.

"No." replied the Sorting Hat. "It is really not my business to meddle with people's memories, but I had to show this to you."

Harry was quiet for so long that Ginny finally said "Harry, are you ok?"

He didn't answer her. He was lost deep in thought. He had found out what the final Horcrux was, but it was a high price to pay. He had been forced to watch his parents get killed.

Harry dropped to his knees and burst into tears.


	10. Another Hidden Chamber

**Chapter 10: Another Hidden Chamber**

Harry laid in bed thinking about everything that had happened. He had just learned he was a descendant of Godric Gryffindor, he, Dumbledore, and Voldemort were related, he saw his parents get killed, and he discovered what the last Horcrux was: Voldemort's wand.

Harry rolled over, trying to get some sleep. It was really late, and everyone else was asleep. McGonagall had allowed him, Ron, Hermione, and Ginny to spend the night in their houses. The next day, they would begin the search for the Horcruxes. Harry ran over them in his mind again.  _"Slytherin's locket, Hufflepuff's cup, Voldemort's snake, and Voldemort's wand."_

Ok, so he knew what they were, the question now was  _where_  they were. Where would Voldemort hide a piece of his soul? Someplace Voldemort thought was safe. A place he felt attached to. Where would that be?

Then it hit him. How about Hogwarts? Right here. It was protected by magical charms and stuff. Even Hagrid had told him years ago,  _'Gringotts is the safest place in the world fer anything yeh want ter keep safe- 'cept maybe Hogwarts.'_

But would Voldemort really hide a piece of his soul right under the nose of Albus Dumbledore. It would be risky, but who would suspect Voldemort to leave something so precious to him so close to his enemies. It would be the last place they'd look. It would also have to be in a very safe place. A place no one would know of, or be able to get to. Harry wondered if he should look at the Maurder's Map and take a look at some of the hidden chambers.

Harry climbed out of bed and pulled out the map. He looked it over carefully. Where would be a good place to look? Fred and George had told him that Filch knew about most of the secret passage ways, so it was probably a place that was really hard to find. One Filch wouldn't even know of.

Perhaps the Room of Requirement. No, probably not. That would be too risky. Then Harry remembered that he had hid the Half-Blood Prince's book there, but that had been in panic. Harry suddenly felt angry, as he remembered who that book really belonged to, but put it out of his mind.

After a few minutes, Harry gave up. He tossed the map aside and laid down again. He was half asleep when his eyes snapped open. He grabbed the map again and began scanning it. He was looking for one specific place. The Chamber of Secrets. It was not on the map.

Harry sat down to think about this. Could a Horcrux be in The Chamber of Secrets? It would be a perfect hiding spot. A place no one knew about. A place only Voldemort could enter. A place guarded by a basilisk. It was perfect.

Harry figured it wouldn't hurt to check it out. He climbed out of bed and exited the Gryffindor common room.

"Where are you going?" asked the Fat Lady.

"Nowhere." said Harry. "Just expect me back at any time."

"What, you expect me to just wait her all night?" cried the Fat Lady outraged.

Harry didn't answer. He made his way through the school, until he came to Moaning Myrtle's bathroom.

"What the?" gasped Harry, as he opened the door.

There were two people in the bathroom, locked together and kissing. The two of them broke apart. It was Neville Longbottom and Luna Lovegood.

"Oh, hi Harry." said Luna, as if Harry hadn't just walked in on her and Neville snogging. "Where've you been these past three days? Neville said you weren't here."

Harry looked at Neville, who was so red it reminded him of Ron.

"Uh, I've been away. What are you two doing in here?" Harry asked, as if he didn't see.

"Snogging." said Luna simply, once again showing her knack of being comfortable about talking about anything. "Neville's a real good kisser."

Neville turned a darker shade of red. "What are you doing here, so late?" he asked in a squeaky voice, trying to change the subject.

"Oh, uh…" Harry muttered. "I… need to... er… talk to Myrtle. In private."

Neville seemed relieved to have a reason to leave. "Oh, sure. No problem. Come on Luna."

Neville lead Luna out by the hand.

"By Harry." she called, as the door closed behind them.

Harry stood there a moment, looking at the closed door.

"Wow, Neville and Luna." he said to himself. "Who would have thought?"

Harry walked over to Myrtle's toilet and looked inside. Bubbles rose every few seconds, indicating that Mytle was asleep. Glad that he didn't have to deal with her, Harry walked over to the sinks, and began looking for the one with the snake carving. After a few second he, found it.

" _Open up."_  Harry hissed in Parseltongue.

He stood back and watched as the entrance to The Chamber of Secrets opened for the first time in years.

Harry looked down into the darkness. It should be safe. The basilisk was long dead, and he was only going to look around a bit.

Harry slide down the slide and into the Chamber. It was just as filthy and disgusting down here as it had been on his last visit. Harry pulled out his wand and said  _"Lumos!"_ He wondered were to look. If there was a Horcrux here, it was probably way in the back.

Harry walked down the tunnel until he came to the pile of rocks that had sealed up from the last trip. He squeezed threw the small opening and continued down the tunnel. It wasn't long before he came to the entrance to the main chamber. The one with the two snakes with emerald eyes.

" _Open."_  Harry hissed.

The two snakes obeyed Harry's command, and parted. Harry walked into the Chamber. It was just as eerie as ever. The skeleton of the basilisk laid at the end of the tunnel.

Harry walked down to the very end. Besides underwater there wasn't really anywhere else to look. Harry shrugged. It had been worth a try. He turned to leave, then stopped. This wasn't the end of the tunnel.

Harry walked over to the giant stone face of Salazar Slytherin. The one that the basilisk had crawled out of. Could the Horcrux be in there?

Harry tried to remember what Tom Riddle had said to open it. Then it came to him.

" _Speak to me, Slytherin, greatest of the Hogwarts Four."_  he said. "Yeah right." he added under his breath.

The giant mouth of Slytherin opened, to reveal the den of the basilisk. Harry took a deep breath and started climbing. He almost fell several times, but managed to make it to the mouth. He pulled himself in and stopped to catch his breath.

" _There better be something here."_  thought Harry.

After a minute or two, Harry started down the tunnel. It was really long, but after about five minutes the tunnel opened up into a new room. Harry entered this room and immediately jumped back.

There were snakes everywhere. Snakes of all kinds. Harry took another step backwards, as the snakes broke out in talk.

" _Who isss thisss?"_

" _Isss he food?"_

" _Did the massster sssend him?"_

Harry realized that there was no way he could get by all these snakes without getting bitten by at least one of them. And these snakes sure didn't sound friendly.

Then Harry remembered, he was a Parselmouth.

" _Let me through."_  he hissed.

The snakes stopped talking.

" _You ssspeak it?"_  a snake hissed.

" _Yes."_  replied Harry.

" _Did the massster sssend you?"_  asked another snake.

Harry assumed the snake was talking about Voldemort.  _"Yes, now let me through."_

The swarm of snakes parted, making a path for Harry that was snake-free. Harry walked down the path, feeling really uncomfortable. He was aware that some of these snakes had venom strong enough to kill.

Harry walked for about another minute before turning a corner and stopping dead in his tracks. He held back a scream and jumped behind a pillar.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (A/N: Sorry, but I'm leaving it at a cliff hanger for now. Hope you enjoyed it.)


	11. The Horcrux of Hufflepuff

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (A/N: What's up. Just that I'd take some to explain a few things with my story. I originally wrote this shortly after reading Book 6. Back then I had a bunch of wild theories about the Horcruxes and other things. As for Harry using the Unforgivable Curses, I believe that if the situation called for it, he would use them only as a last resort. He's already proven that he's willing to use them in Book 5 when he faced Bellatrix. And he'll need to resort to the Killing Curse to defeat Voldemort. This is a war after all. I haven't forgotten Voldemort's other minions such as giants and dementors, they're coming later. As for my theory on a Horcrux being at Hogwarts, I know it seems unlikely. But that's the point. Who would suspect Voldemort hiding a piece of his soul at Hogwarts. It's the last place anyone would look. Not to mention it could be in the Chamber of Secrets. No one knows, or knew, where the entrance was, you need a Parselmouth to get in, and it's guarded by a basilisk. Voldemort did return to Hogwarts in an attempt to get the Defense Against the Dark Arts position. He could have hidden a Horcrux then. For my theory on Voldemort attempting to make Harry a Horcrux was a way to explain Harry and Voldemort's mental connection. Dumbledore said that Voldemort accidentally transferred some of his powers to Harry the night he gave him his scar, this was explanation how.)
> 
> Disclaimer: I own nothing but nothing

**Chapter 11- The Horcrux of Hufflepuff**

Harry stood behind the pillar, breathing heavily. He had seen something that nearly killed him. Very,  _very_  slowly, Harry looked around the pillar, and saw exactly what he feared. A basilisk. Not just one, but an entire nest, of about six basilisks. Turns out that The Chamber of Secrets was the home of not just one basilisk, but a bunch. They were curled in a circle around what looked like a type of shrine. Thankfully, Harry hadn't made eye contact with any of them, or else he would be dead already. It seemed, however, that the basilisks deadly stare didn't effect other snakes.

Harry ducked back behind the pillar as one of the basilisks began to rise.

" _I sssmell blood."_  it hissed.  _"Human blood."_

Harry heard more movement, indicating that the other basilisks had risen. Harry's heart began racing. He had a feeling that even though he was a Parselmouth, these snakes wouldn't obey anyone but the heir of Slytherin. One basilisk had been hard enough to kill, but six. And Fawkes wasn't here to poke their eyes out. Suddenly, coming into The Chamber of Secrets alone didn't seem like such a good idea.

" _We haven't eaten in ssso long."_  hissed one of the basilisks.  _"Must eat."_

" _It might be the massster."_  suggested another.

" _No."_  hissed a third.  _"Hisss ssscent isss different."_

Harry considered making a run for it, but couldn't bring himself to move. He heard the basiliks approaching. Quickly, Harry shut his eyes, as he saw movement on his left. He heard as the giant snake moved by him, not daring to open his eyes.

" _It'sss here sssomewhere."_  said one of the giant snakes.

Harry couldn't take it anymore. Almost uncontrollably, he opened his eyes the slightest bit, and saw the blurred outlines of four basilisks, their heads were turned away from him.

Harry opened his eyes a little wider, and gasped. He saw that there were not four snakes, just three. One of them was almost twice as long as the others, and it had two head. Harry had heard about this happening to snakes, but he didn't know it could happen to basilisks too. A one-headed basilisk was enough trouble.

The three snakes, or four, however you see it, were flicking their tongues in and out, trying to pinpoint the source of the smell.

Harry slowly began inching around the pillar, but stopped as he saw three more basilisks on the other side. Harry was cornered.

" _We're clossse."_  hissed one of the basilisks.

Harry seemed to be suffocating with fear, for he could barley breath. It wouldn't be long before the giant snakes found him.

Suddenly Harry had an idea. It was a desperate attempt, but it was all he had. He reached into his pocket and pulled out one of the Decoy Detonators that Fred and George had given to him. He tossed it a short distance away, where it ran off.

Harry shut his eyes again, and waited. A few seconds later, there was a loud high-pitched noise from somewhere on the other side of the chamber. Technically, snakes can't hear anything besides Parseltongue, but the noise was so loud that it created a vibration that caused all the basilisks to go rapidly crawling in that direction. They didn't notice Harry crouching by the pillar.

Harry wanted desperately to leave, but didn't know if it was safe to do so. He needed a way to get by the giant serpents without them noticing. He tried thinking back to what that page Hermione got out of the library said about basilisks. He remembered that basilisks were born from a chicken eggs, hatched beneath a toad. They have a murderous stare. Spiders flee before them. And they flee from the crowing of a rooster, which is fatal to them

Harry's eyes snapped open. The rooster's crow was fatal to them. Of course. It was his only chance. He pointed his wand at a rock and transfigured it into a rooster.

" _Sonorus!"_ He said, pointing his wand at the rooster.

The rooster blinked in confusion, but did nothing.

"Come on, crow!" Harry urged the rooster.

But it merely cocked its head sideways and stared at Harry.

" _I sssmell sssomething elssse."_  hissed one of the basilisks excitedly.  _"Behind that pillar."_

Harry pointed his wand at the rooster and bellowed  _"LUMOS!"_

The rooster crowed loudly at the instant flash of light. There was an immediate cry of pain from the basilisks, followed by the sound of exploding flesh. Then everything was quiet.

Harry slowly looked behind the pillar. The bodies of the basilisks were not more than a few feet from his hiding spot. All their heads had exploded.

Harry laid back against the pillar and breathed a sigh of relief. He had just killed six basilisks, one with two heads, single handily. He wondered if any other wizard in history had ever managed to pull that off. He would have to ask Hermione, she would know.

Suddenly he remembered the whole reason why he had come down here in the first place. Harry got up and walked past the dead basilisks and over to the shrine. There were snakes all over it. One of the snakes was carved out of stone and was coiled around something. A strange black box, with two keyholes.

Harry's heart started racing again as he picked up the box. He tried to open it, but predictably, he couldn't.

" _Alohomora!"_  he said, pointing his wand at the box.

It didn't unlock.

" _Specialis Revelio!"_

Nothing happened.

Harry stood there a moment, trying to figure out what to do. Finally, he gave up. It seemed the only way to open the box was with the keys. Maybe Hermione could figure out another way to open it up.

Harry turned around to leave, and accidentally stepped on a snake. It hissed loudly and struck, getting Harry in the leg.

Harry fell backwards, more in surprise than in pain. He pulled up his pants leg and looked at the spot the snake had bit him. The skin wasn't even broken. There were two red marks, but nothing more.

Harry looked at the snake in confusion. It hissed at him, exposing its fangs. Only they weren't fangs, they were keys.

Of course, it was ingenious. Even if someone did manage to get into the Chamber and past the basilisks, they wouldn't be able to open the box without the keys. Keys held by something only Voldemort could communicate with. It was brilliant. He couldn't believe that out of all the snakes he could have stepped on, it was this one. He hadn't felt this lucky since the time he took Felix Felicis. Perhaps it was fate.

He grabbed the snake, it began hissing madly, and held it over the box. The snake struck, its key fangs going into the two keyholes. Harry heard a click, indicating that the box had unlocked. He put down the snake, which quickly slithered into the darkness, and slowly opened the box.

Inside was a small golden cup. There was a small carving on it, in the shape of a badger. It was the cup of Helga Hufflepuff. The Hufflepuff Horcrux.

Harry stood there a moment, holding the cup. There was a piece of Voldemort's soul sealed inside this very item in his hands. Now the question was, how did he destroy it?

He heard a squawk and saw the rooster he had created with a snake, that looked like a python, wrapped around it. But when the rooster got his attention, it made him realize that the swarm of snakes were closing in on him.

" _Back off."_  he ordered them.

They obeyed his command and backed off. Harry turned his attention back to the cup. Was there some special spell needed to destroy the cup. Harry shrugged and placed the cup on the floor. He had an idea. It was worth a try.

" _Avada Kedavra!"_  he cried, pointing his wand at the cup.

A jet of green light shot out of his wand and hit the cup, which flew about five feet in the air. A few seconds after it hit the ground, and something that looked like a black ghost erupted from the cup. Harry recognized the face of Voldemort on the ghost.

The piece of Voldemort's soul howled in rage and pain. And then it was gone, vanishing in a flash of light. The cup lay still on the ground, being just that, a cup.

Harry picked it up and looked at it. It was just a cup. No longer a Horcrux. This piece of Voldemort's soul was destroyed. He had done it.

Harry smiled, and pocketed the cup. He turned and began making his way back down the Chamber.

" _One down,"_  he thought.  _"Three to go."_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (A/N: I know, I know. The two-headed basilisk is real cheesy. But I wanted to make a real monster in the chamber other than just a few more basilisks. As for Harry destroying the Horcrux so easily, I always thought that besides completely destroying the item the Horcrux was in, the Killing Curse would kill the piece of the person within the item. Harry was simply trying a theory and it paid off.)


	12. An Important Discovery

**Chapter 12: An Important Discovery**

"I still can't believe you went back down in The Chamber of Secrets without us." said Ron, as he, Harry, Hermione, and Ginny exited the grounds of Hogwarts.

"I really didn't think I would find anything." said Harry. "But I thought it would be best to check, just to make sure."

He had just finished telling them about how he had discovered the Hufflepuff Horcrux.

"You're lucky to be alive, right now, you know." said Hermione, in a very serious voice.

"I know." replied Harry. "I didn't think there would be any danger, with the basilisk dead. Who would have thought there was more than one?"

"Hey mate, I don't blame you for thinking it was safe." said Ron. "I would have thought so too. Just don't go on anymore search parties without us, alright?"

Harry smiled. "Ok, I won't."

The four of them walked in silence for a couple of minutes.

"Do you think this is far enough?" asked Harry.

"It should be." Hermione replied. "I think we're outside the anti-apparating area."

Harry nodded. "Alright. Ginny grab onto me. We don't want to risk you splinching yourself right now."

Everyone but Ginny laughed.

"That's not funny." she growled.

"Sorry." said Harry. "We'll work your training a little later today."

"Where are we going, anyway?" asked Ron.

"To Grimmauld Place." replied Harry. "There's a few things I need to show you."

The four of them sat at a table. In the middle of the table was a Pensieve.

"Ok, for today I thought it would be best to show you exactly what Dumbledore showed me during our private lessons." explained Harry. "They may provide some kind of clue. I'm also going to show you what exactly happened the night Voldemort returned. I know I've told you the story, but I think it would be better for you all to see it, so you know just what exactly we're up against."

The others nodded. Harry took a deep breath and began searching through his memories for the private lessons he had with Dumbledore. Whenever he grabbed hold of a memory, he would drop it into the Pensieve.

Finally, all the memories he was searching for were floating in the Pensieve. Harry leaned back against his chair.

"Ok, you all ready?" he asked. His three friends nodded again. "Alright, lets dive in."

And the four of them dove into the memories of Voldemort's past. They saw the house of Gaunt, Dumbledore meeting Tom Riddle for the first time, Voldemort confronting his uncle, Voldemort's meeting with Hepzibah Smith, Slughorn's lesson on Horcruxes, and Voldemort's meeting with Dumbledore.

Hermione and Ginny were crying at the end of the graveyard memory, and Ron looked faint.

"Come on." said Harry, as the memory ended.

Everyone was quiet when they exited the memory.

"Wow." Ron finally said. "That was… I mean hearing it was one thing, but seeing it."

Harry nodded. "I know. It's not pleasant. I sometimes relive that night in my dreams."

There was another uncomfortable silence between them.

"So, what now?" Hermione asked.

A few more seconds of silence went by before Harry said. "Well, I said we were going to help Ginny with her apparating lessons again today."

And that is what they did. Ginny was getting very good. Close to the end of the day, she managed to apparate four times without splinching herself.

"Well done, Ginny!" Harry congratulated her.

"I guess practicing for several hours a day allowed you to learn faster." said Hermione.

"You're just jealous she learned faster than you did." sneered Ron.

Hermione threw him a dirty look. "Well we did only have lessons for an hour every Saturday."

Harry and Ginny looked at each other and rolled their eyes, knowing another Granger-Weasley argument was about to break out.

(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)

Harry woke up late that night. He didn't open his eyes, but he could tell it was still dark out. He suddenly felt like he was being watched and opened his eyes. Ginny was sitting by his bed.

"Ginny, you ok?" he asked.

She nodded. "I just couldn't sleep. So I decided to come watch you sleep."

Harry sat up. He could tell something was wrong. "What's wrong?"

Ginny sighed. "I was just thinking."

"About what?"

"About the Horcruxes. The memories you showed us. Everything. It just seems, impossible to do this."

Harry pulled her into a hug. "Hey, don't worry. It'll all work out. One way or another."

"I hope so." said Ginny. "I just don't want to loose you. And after seeing what Voldemort is capable of, and what we're going after, it doesn't really seem like the odds are in our favor. I mean, how are we supposed to find the last three Horcruxes? We don't even know where to look."

"I thought the same thing." said Harry, stroking her hair. "But it may not be as bad as you think. The locket is probably going to be the hardest to find. That just leaves Voldemort's snake and his wand."

Ginny looked at him. "His wand?"

"Yeah, remember from…" But he trailed off, realizing he hadn't yet told Ron, Hermione, or Ginny about the memory the Sorting Hat had showed him. It had been too hard to deal with then. But now he felt he should tell someone.

"It was in the memory the Sorting Hat showed me. From the night my parents died."

And he told her all about how Voldemort broke into his house and killed his father. How Snape and Wormtail stopped him and his mother from escaping. How Voldemort had killed his mother right in front of him. How Voldemort attempted to make Harry a Horcrux, but the wand became it instead. Tears were pouring down Ginny's cheeks by the time he finished, and Harry had to fight to stop his own eyes from leaking.

"You had to watch that?" said Ginny.

Harry nodded. "I didn't have a choice. I had no control. But now we at least know what the final Horcrux is."

"So the snake and the wand would be with Voldemort." said Ginny, putting the pieces together. "Now the question is, where would the locket be?"

"That's the question." repeated Harry. "We'll have to figure out what R.A.B. means, before we have any hope of finding it though. And we'll get a start on that tomorrow. For now, you should get some sleep."

Ginny nodded in agreement. Harry kissed her and laid back down. Ginny laid down next to him, and the two of them fell into dreamless sleep.

(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)

"Harry! Harry wake up!" cried a voice.

Harry opened his eyes at the sound of his name being called. Ginny was still beside him, slowly waking up also.

"Harry!" Hermione burst into the room. "Wake up! Come on! I need to show you something!"

"I'm up, what?" Harry muttered sleepily.

"Quick, come with me!" cried Hermione.

"What is it?"

"I think I know what R.A.B. is." she replied.

"R.A.B…" repeated Harry, still half asleep. "R.A… R.A.B.!"

"Yes! Come on!" Hermione cried.

She lead Harry and Ginny through the house, explaining on the way.

"I woke up early and couldn't get back to sleep. I decided to do a bit of cleaning, since this house is such a mess. And I came across this."

She pointed to the Black Family Tapestry. Harry stared at it.

"What should I be looking for?" he asked.

"Oh Harry, look!" said Hermione impatiently.

She pointed at the name  _REGULUS BLACK._

Harry stared at the name. Regulus Black. Could it be Regulus A. Black? If it was, then he could very well be R.A.B.

Sirius had said that his brother was a Death Eater, and he was killed on his orders for trying to back out. And the note inside the fake Horcrux did say 'To the Dark Lord'. Only Death Eaters called Voldemort the Dark Lord.

"What's going on?" asked Ron, coming into he room. "What's all the yelling about?"

"We think we might know what R.A.B. means." said Ginny.

All the sleepiness vanished from Ron's face. "What? What's it mean?"

"Well, it could mean Sirius's brother." said Harry. "If his middle name begins with the letter A."

Harry thought about this. Maybe when Regulus tried to back out of the Death Eaters, he decided to take the locket, but was killed before he could destroy it.

" _If so, that means he wasn't alone."_  thought Harry, remembering Dumbledore's and his trip to get the fake locket.  _"Someone must have been there to drink the potion, while the other person took the locket, and fought off the Inferi."_

Then it came to him. He knew how he could settle this.

"Kreacher!" Harry called.

He waited a couple of seconds, but Kreacher didn't come.

"Kreacher?" he said again.

Kreacher still didn't appear.

"KREACHER!"

_Crack!_ A house elf appeared in the room. But it was not Kreacher.

"Dobby?" Harry said in surprise.

The elf bowed.

"Harry Potter called, sir."

"Er…" Harry muttered. He was trying to think about the best way to say this without hurting Dobby's feelings. "Listen Dobby, nothing personal, but I needed to speak to Kreacher."

Dobby's ears drooped.

"It's nothing against you, Dobby." Harry said quickly. "I just had a question about his old master."

Dobby shook his head. "It's not that, sir. It's just… Dobby wonders how to say this, but Kreacher passed away last week."

Harry's mouth dropped open. Hermione made a shocked gasp noise.

"Oh." said Harry. He was actually surprised that this news shocked him so much. Kreacher had seemed dead on his feet for a long time. "Well then, uh… never mind."

"Dobby is sorry he has to deliver this terrible news." said the elf. But Harry thought he heard a bit of happiness in his voice. Dobby had been, after all, a little jealous of Kreacher.

"It's ok, Dobby." Harry reassured him. "I guess we'll just have to find what we were looking for another way."

"Dobby wants Harry Potter to know that if he ever needs anything, Dobby will be happy to do it for him."

Harry smiled at him. "Thanks Dobby."

Dobby's eyes shined with tears of joy. With one last bow he vanished.

Harry turned to the others. "So much for that."

"Poor Kreacher." said Hermione.

"Oh please." said Ron. "I'm surprised he lived as long as he did. I expected him to croak months ago."

"Ron-" Hermione started, but Harry cut her off.

"Not now, Hermione. We need to figure this out. If Regulus did take the locket, it could be anywhere."

"It might be here." said Ginny. "Could we try summoning it?"

Harry remembered that he had asked Dumbledore the same thing in the cave.

"Certainly we could." he said, repeating Dumbledore's exact words. "Why don't you do it?"

Ginny gave Harry the same look he had given Dumbledore.

"Um, ok." said Ginny.  _"Accio Horcrux!"_

They waited a few seconds, but nothing came.

Ginny shrugged her shoulders. "Oh well. It was worth a try."

"What now?" asked Ron.

"I think I know." said Harry. "I just got an idea."

He turned and left the room.

"Where are you going?" called Hermione.

"To write a letter." Harry called back, as the door closed behind him.


	13. Blackmailing Borgin

**Chapter 13: Blackmailing Borgin**

Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Ginny waited for their visitor to arrive. Harry had sent a letter to a certain someone yesterday, telling them to be here at exactly 10:00, and that it was very important.

"Do you really think he still has it?" Hermione asked.

"No way." said Harry. "He'll have sold it by now. We just need to find out to who."

He looked at the clock. It was ten after. Where could they be?

Almost on cue, there was a knock on the door.

" _About time."_  thought Harry, as he opened the door.

"'Arry!" cried Mundungus Fletcher. "Good to see 'ou."

"Yes, come in." said Harry, not sounding so friendly.

Mundungus came inside and sat down.

"So, wha's the big emergency?" he asked. "Are the other members o' the Order comin'?"

"No." replied Harry. "This doesn't concern them. This has to do with all the stuff you stole last year after Sirius died."

Some of the color drained from Mundungus's face. "I though' 'ou said this was an urgen' matter considerin' the war with You-Know-Who." he said, moving uncomfortably.

"It does." said Hermione.

"Yeah. When you were stealing from me, did you happen to find a gold locket, with the letter 'S' on it?" asked Harry.

Mundungus shifted some more. "No, I don' thin' so." he replied. Lying was heard in each word. "I'm sure I woul' 'ave remembered somethin' like that."

Harry glared at him. "Don't lie to me."

"I'm not lyin'." exclaimed Mundungus. "I don' 'ave the locket."

"I figured as much." said Harry impatiently. "What did you do with it?"

"I didn'-"

"Look, I don't care that you stole it. I don't care that it should be mine. I don't care what you did with it. But I need to know where it is."

Harry's eyes burned into Mundungus's, who tried very hard not to blink.

"Alrigh'!" Mundungus finally said. "I sol' it. Got a good price for it too. Never woul' 'ave though' it woul' be worth so-"

"Who did you sell it t?" Ron cut in.

"Why, Mr. Borgin, at Borgin and Burkes." Mundungus replied. "And 'e paid me a surprisin' 2,000 Galleons for it. Never woul' 'ave though' it woul' 'ave been worth so much."

"You sold the locket of Salazar Slytherin for 2,000 Galleons?" gasped Ron.

This time, all the color drained from Mundungus's face. "W-wha'? Sly-Slytherin's locket?"

"Yes." said Harry. "That locket once belonged to Salazar Slytherin."

"Merlin's beard!" exclaimed Mundungus. "And 'e only gave me 2,000 Galleons! Wha' a rip off! Tha' locket was PRICELESS! And I only got 2000 Galleons! That's nothin' compared to what I coul' 'ave-"

"Never mind that now." interrupted Harry. "Come on. We need to go pay a little visit to Knockturn Alley."

The other three nodded and got up.

"Wait!" Mundungus shouted. "Why is tha' locket so important in the war?"

"Because it also once belonged to Lord Voldemort." replied Harry, just before he disapparated.

He reappeared at the entrance to Knockturn Alley. Ron, Hermione, and Ginny appeared behind him a second later. No one seemed to notice that this was the fifth time Ginny had successfully apparated.

They walked carefully down Knockturn Alley, which was, if possible, even gloomier than their last visit. Finally, Borgin and Burkes came into view.

"Alright, you guys ready for this?" asked Harry.

They nodded. Harry nodded back and opened the door. Mr. Borgin was behind the counter. He looked up when the four of them entered.

"Hello." he said in a friendly voice. "How may I… help… you…"

He trailed off as his eyes trailed over Hermione, who just last year had been butting into his private business with Draco Malfoy. His eyes then darted over to Harry, and traced over his scar.

"Good lord, it's Harry Potter!" he cried.

"Yes, I know." said Harry impatiently. "Where's the locket?"

Mr. Borgin raised his eyebrows. "Locket? What locket?"

"Slytherin's locket." said Harry, clearing things up. "The one Mundungus Fletcher sold you. I know you have it. Mundungus told me. So just let me see it."

Mr. Borgin looked anxious. "You must be mistaking. I don't have-"

"Yes, you do." snapped Harry. "Now stop wasting my time, and bring it here."

Mr. Borgin narrowed his eyes. "I'm not selling it. Something like that is priceless. It once belonged to the founders of Hogwarts. You have no idea how valuable it is."

"I don't want to  _buy_  it." Harry reassured him. "I just want to  _see_  it."

Mr. Borgin didn't look convinced. "I don't take it out for anyone."

His tone was final. But Harry had been prepared for this, and had an ace up his sleeve. He leaned in close to Mr. Borgin.

"Now listen, Mr. Borgin. I happen to know that you have been buying Dark Magic items from Lucius Malfoy."

The color vanished from Mr. Borgin's face. Harry smiled and continued. "I also know that you were helping Draco Malfoy mend the Vanishing Cabinet, and you sold him the cursed necklace, that nearly killed a student at Hogwarts. You had a helping hand with the death of Albus Dumbledore. And for your information, I happen to have friends in the Ministry, including the minister himself. So unless you show me the locket, right now, I will turn you over."

Mr. Borgin opened and closed his mouth, apparently not knowing what to say. When he recovered himself he said "Alright fine. I'll get it. But you can only  _look_  at it."

And with that, Mr. Borgin went into the back room. A minute or two later he came back holding a small box. He opened it up, revealing the locket.

Harry reached over and picked it up.

"Hey!" exclaimed Mr. Borgin. "I said look!"

Harry ignored him. He looked at the locket. Yup, this was the real one. There was no mistaking it.

"Ok, that's long enough." growled Mr. Borgin. "You've seen it,  _and_ touched it. Now give it back."

"Not yet." said Harry.

He laid the locket on the floor and pulled out his wand.

"What are you doing?" asked Mr. Borgin, eyeing Harry's wand suspiciously.

" _Avada Kedavra!"_  cried Harry, pointing his wand at the locket.

Mr. Borgin cried out, as the locket flew several feet in the air.

"WHAT THE BLOODY HELL ARE YOU-"

But he stopped, as the piece of Voldemort's soul flew out of the locket and vanished.

Satisfied, Harry picked up the locket and handed it back to a stunned Mr. Borgin.

"Wha-"

"Thanks." said Harry. "You can have it back now."

Mr. Borgin slowly took the locket from Harry, still looking shocked at what he had just seen. Someone began tugging on Harry's robes.

"I think it would be best, if Mr. Borgin didn't remember this." whispered Hermione.

Harry figured she was right, and nodded. Hermione pulled out her wand and pointed it at Mr. Borgin.

" _Obliviate!"_  she cried.

There was a flash of light, and Mr. Borgin's shocked expression vanished.

"Since when could you do a Memory Charm?" asked Ron in surprise.

Hermione smirked at him. "Oh, a while."

Mr. Borgin blinked in confusion, and came out of his zombie-like state. He quickly stuffed the locket into its box and put it under the counter.

"Is there anything else you need?" Mr. Borgin asked.

"No, I think we're done here." said Ron cheerfully.

"Wait!" said Harry. "There is one more thing."

The others eyed him suspiciously, as Harry reached into his robes. He pulled out the cup of Hufflepuff and placed it on the counter.

"I'm interested in selling this." said Harry, trying not to laugh at the shocked expression on Mr. Borgin's face.

(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)

The four of them walked out of Borgin and Burkes five minutes later. Harry was grinning ear to ear, and Ron and Ginny had stunned looks on their faces.

"Harry, we can't except it." said Ron in a small voice.

"It's already been done." said Harry, smiling more broadly.

Harry had sold the cup of Hufflepuff for an extremely large amount of gold, which he had given all to the Weasleys. He was going to give Hermione some too, but she had insisted that she didn't need any.

Ron and Ginny had of course refused to take it, but Harry had insisted. He said that he had no need for the gold, since he had several millions with his and Sirius's vault combined, and that the whole reason he had sold the cup was to give the Weasleys the money.

Yet even Harry was surprised how much Mr. Borgin had bought the cup for. Harry made sure to get the very best price. He had an idea how much an item of the founders was worth, since Hepzibah Smith, who was extremely rich, had said she needed to pay an arm and a leg to get hold of one of the items. But who would have thought that Mr. Borgin had  _that_  much money. Harry figured it was for all the rare items he sold and the high prices he sold them for.

"This is just… Harry, we can't" said Ginny.

"Sure you can." said Harry. "And I'm not taking it back either. Besides, you guys have done so much more for me than I could ever repay."

Ron and Ginny didn't seem to have a respond to this. But Harry still heard Ron whisper to Ginny. "Mum and Dad are going to have heart attacks, when they find out about this."

Harry smiled some more. He did wonder how Mr. and Mrs. Weasley would react when they learned that money would never be a problem for them again.


	14. Assembling the Order

**Chapter 14: Assembling the Order**

_"DEATH EATERS ATTACK HOGWARTS"_

_Everyone's worst fears were confirmed, when a group of Death Eaters made an attack on Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. It seems that You-Know-Who has now shown that nothing will stop him from taking over. The last time he was at large, he did not attempt to take over Hogwarts while Albus Dumbledore (who is believed to be the only one You-Know-Who feared) was there. Now it seems that with the former headmaster gone, You-Know-Who will not hesitate to take over even the place he would not in the past._

" _We were caught completely of guard." said the new headmistress, Minerva McGonagall. "Everyone was asleep when the attack took place."_

_The Death Eaters apparently got into Hogwarts through an undiscovered chamber, leading from the Honeydukes basement in the village of Hogsmeade. The passage was discovered when several Death Eaters made an attempt to escape when the aurors arrived._

_Severus Snape was the one to lead the Death Eater attack, and being a former teacher at Hogwarts, knew his way around the school and was able to allow the Death Eaters to get through the school undetected._

" _If it hadn't been for Filch, we would never have known they were in the school." said the Charms teacher, Professor Flitwick._

_Argus Filch, the caretaker, had been patrolling the corridors, and seeing the Death Eaters, sounded the alarm, which unfortunately cost the man his life._

_While ministry officials arrived five minutes after the alarm was sound, the damage had already been done. The bodies of the Herbology teacher Professor Sprout, the Divination teacher Professor Trelawney, and the new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher Professor Morgan were discovered shortly after Filch's._

_Along with these an estimated 20 students were found dead as well. Several others were gravely injured. The Potions teacher Professor Slughorn and the Flying Instructor Madam Hooch have been sent to St. Mungo's, along with an estimate 15 students, and should make a full recovery._

_However, the Death Eaters didn't get away completely. Six have been reported dead and eight more have been caught. But due to these unfortunate events, Hogwarts has been closed until further notice. It seems no place is safe from You-Know-Who and his followers._

Harry put down the article. He couldn't read anymore. The Death Eaters had invaded Hogwarts. Up to twenty students were dead, along with Filch, Professor Sprout, Professor Trelawney, and the new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, and several others were in St. Mungo's.

Harry looked at his three friends. Each one of them had the same look as Harry had on their faces.

It had been two months since the locket Horcrux had been destroyed. During those two months, the four of them had been having meetings with certain members of the Order, trying find out where Voldemort was hiding, but so far they had no leads. And none of the Death Eaters were willing to talk.

There was a loud bang, as Harry banged his head down on the table and just laid there.

"Harry?" said Hermione. "Are you ok?"

"It's my fault." Harry muttered, not looking up.

"What do you mean?" asked Ron.

"I knew about that passage." said Harry. "It was the one I took in our third year. Wormtail knew about it too. He was one of the makers of the Maurder's Map. I'll bet you anything he told Voldemort about it. I should have told Dumbledore when I had the chance, or even McGonagall. I can't believe I didn't say anything."

Ginny got up and wrapped her arms around him.

"No Harry, it's not your fault." she said soothingly. "You weren't the only one who knew about it. We knew too. So did Fred and George. Even Lupin. We all knew. Just because you never thought that Voldemort would try something like this, does not make it your fault. You never had to use that passage way again, so you forgot all about it. That doesn't make it your fault. I don't blame you. No one blames you. It's no ones fault but Voldemort's. If there's anyone to blame, it's him."

Harry looked up at her. He knew she was right, but it felt so much better to hear her say it. It was Voldemort's fault. It was all his fault. But enough was enough. Whether he was ready or not, he had to face Voldemort before anyone else could get hurt.

Harry stood up. "You're right." he said. "It is Voldemort's fault. And he will pay for this. I'm setting up a meeting for all the Order members. After that, we're going after Voldemort."

"What?" said Ron. "But we still don't know where he is."

"I know." replied Harry. "That's why we'll make him come to us."

"But we don't know where he is." repeated Ron.

"But I know how to find out." said Harry. "Scrimgeour's not going to like it though. I don't even like it. But desperate times call for desperate measures."

(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)

A week later, all the members of the Order were at the final meeting. Harry had assigned each of them an important task to get more allies to fight against Voldemort.

"Who are we waiting on?" Ron asked.

"Just your parents and Hagrid." replied Hermione.

"Do you think Hagrid managed to convince them?" asked Ginny.

"I hope so." said Harry. "It would really help our chances."

Just then there was a knock at the door. Harry got up and answered it. It was Mr. and Mrs. Weasley.

"HARRY JAMES POTTER!" shouted Mrs. Weasley, the moment the door opened. "What in the name of Merlin were you thinking? It's too much! You can't possibly give us all that gold!"

"Yes, I can." said Harry calmly. He had been expecting this. "I already did. And I don't want it back. I don't need or want it."

"Harry, it's 2 million Galleons." said Mr. Weasley. "You can't possibly-"

"Yes, I can." Harry repeated. "And now I'm going to tell you the same thing I told Ron and Ginny. You have done more for me than I could ever repay. That gold means nothing to me, compared to you all. The whole reason I sold the cup was for you. Now, instead of trying to give it back, you should start spending it."

"Harry, there is no way you are just going to give us all that gold!" Mrs. Weasley shouted. "You will go down to Gringott's right now and-"

"I already had it so it can't be given or taken back." said Harry. "Trust me Mrs. Weasley. I have more gold than I know what to do with. The whole reason I sold the cup was you could have it. You are my family. I want to share with you. And I'm not taking it back. I'll just throw it out unless you keep it."

Mrs. Weasley didn't seem to know what to say to this. "Oh Harry. What am I going to do with you?"

Harry just smiled. At that moment Hagrid came in behind Mr. and Mrs. Weasley. "Ah, hello Hagrid."

Hagrid had just appeared behind Mr. Weasley.

"Hello there, Harry." he said. "How've yeh been?"

"I should be asking you that." said Harry. "After what happened at Hogwarts."

Hagrid's eyes narrowed. "Them ruddy Death Eaters. I can' wait ter get my hands on 'em."

"You'll get your chance." said Harry. "But now that we're all here, lets get started."

(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)

Everyone was present at the final meeting for The Order of the Phoenix.

"So Hagrid, did everything go ok?" asked Harry.

"Better than ever!" said Hagrid proudly. "At first Aragog's kids planned ter eat me, but then I asked if they be willing to help in the fight against You-Know-Who. They didn' seem to want to help at firs', but then I said… well… I said they would have… er, 'live meat' and they agreed."

Harry had been the one who thought that the acromantulas in the Forbidden Forest might be willing to help, but his stomach turned at the thought that Hagrid had promised the that they could eat the Death Eaters.

" _Oh well."_  he thought.  _"It's better for us."_

"But tha's not even the best part." said Hagrid. "On my way out, I met the centaurs. They said they wanted ter help."

"What?" said Harry. The last time the centaurs had found out they helped out a human they were furious. "I thought they don't help people."

"Yah, well, they said tha' they read the heavens and they said that if You-Know-Who triumphs they would all die."

"Did they say how the battle would turn out?" asked Ginny.

"Nah, they didn' know. All they said was that there will be loses on both sides, and that this will be the final battle."

Harry didn't know how to feel about that. Loses on both sides didn't sound good. He put it out of his mind for now.

"So Moody, how did it go with the aurors?" he asked.

"Oh, the entire auror office is willing to fight." growled Moody. "You don't need to worry about that. And even the minister said he'll lend us his army of heliopaths."

"What?" gasped Hermione. "But I thought they weren't real."

Moody's magic eye turned on her. "Most people do. But they're very real. They're the personal guards for the Minister of Magic."

"Wow." said Ron. "Who would have thought they would have lived to see the day when Luna Lovegood was right and Hermione Granger was wrong."

Hermione glared at him.

"Anyway." Harry said loudly. "I just need to know that you are all with me. If you want to back out, I don't blame you, but if you're with me-"

"Of course we're with you." said Ron.

"That's right." said Hermione. "We all know what we're up against, and we're sticking by you."

Everyone else nodded in agreement. Harry smiled at them. They were all willing to stick by him.

"I have a question." said Tonks. "How are we going to find You-Know-Who?"

Harry sighed. "I have an idea. And I'm going to need your help Moody."

Moody blinked in surprise, but nodded. "Whatever you need, Potter."

Harry nodded. "Good. Then bring me Peter Pettigrew."


	15. The End Approaches

**Chapter 15: The End Approaches**

Harry waited outside the Ministry for Moody to return. He had been glad that Wormtail was finally in Azkaban where he belonged, but now that he had to… Oh well, it was for the best.

The doors opened and Moody came out, with Wormtail and two more aurors behind him. Wormtail looked terrified to see Harry, who couldn't blame him. After all, he had been hit by Harry's  _Sectumsempra_  spell during their last encounter.

"You can leave him here." Harry said to the aurors. "I need to speak to him in private."

The aurors didn't seem like they were about to leave Harry alone with Wormtail, until Moody said, "You heard him! Get out! Come on! Out!"

The doors closed leaving Harry and Wormtail alone. Harry pulled out his wand and pointed it at the man who betrayed his parents.

"Are you going to kill me?" asked Wormtail in a small voice.

"I should." said Harry in a deadly voice. "You wouldn't hesitate to kill me. And you didn't hesitate to turn my parents over to Voldemort. But am I going to kill you? No."

He put his wand away. Wormtail relaxed a bit. Suddenly Harry hit him hard in the face.

"That was for my parents." he said.

Wormtail started to sit up. His nose was bleeding. As soon as he sat up, Harry hit him again.

"And that is for everyone who got hurt or killed at Hogwarts."

Wormtail sat up again, his left eye a little swollen.

"Is this what you brought me here for?" he asked. "To beat me up?"

Harry glared at him. "No, but that felt good. I actually brought you here to let you go."

Wormtail stared at him in confusion. "Let me go? I don't understand."

"Apparently not." said Harry. "Let me clear it up. For the past two months, we've been trying to find Voldemort, but have had no luck. So, you're going to-"

"I'm not telling." Wormtail said immediately. "We've al made the Unbreakable Vow not to-"

"I know you're not going to tell." interrupted Harry. "None of the Death Eaters are. So that's why you're going to personally go to Voldemort, and give him this."

Harry took a red envelope out of his robes. A howler.

"Give this to Voldemort. Give it to him personally. No aurors will be following you. This will be your repayment for me saving your life 4 years ago. Do this and I'll consider your payment complete."

Wormtail glared at him. But he had a dept to repay. "Very well."

He reached for the howler. Harry pulled it back.

"Not so fast." he said. You expect me to just trust you? Moody!"

The door burst open and Moody came back in the room.

"What are you doing?" asked Wormtail, looking from Harry to Moody.

"You are going to make the Unbreakable Vow to me." said Harry simply.

"The what?" gasped Wormtail.

"You heard me." replied Harry. "This time, I'm going to make sure you don't mess up. Moody will be our bonder."

Wormtail didn't seem to like the idea. "Do I have to?"

"No, but if you don't agree, you're going back to Azkaban." sneered Harry. "All you have to do is give this to Voldemort. It's very simple."

Wormtail thought about it a moment. "Alright, fine."

Harry smiled. He and Wormtail grasped right hands, and Moody placed his wand over their hands.

"Will you, Peter Pettigrew, give this letter to Voldemort in person as soon as possible and without delay?"

"I… I w-will." muttered Wormtail.

A tongue of fire came out of Moody's wand and wound around their hands.

Harry nodded, satisfied. "The bond is done." he said.

The ribbon of flame vanished in a flash of light. Harry handed Wormtail the howler. Wormtail took it with a trembling hand.

"Now get out of here!" snapped Harry.

Wormtail sneered at him and left. Neither Harry or Moody spoke.

"You sure this was a good idea, Potter?" asked Moody.

Harry didn't answer right away. "No, I'm not. But it's the only plan I've got."

"You let Peter Pettigrew go?" gasped Ron. "Why?"

"Only Death Eaters know where Voldemort is." explained Harry. "So I decided to have a Death Eater deliver the message, to bring Voldemort out of hiding."

"But why Pettigrew?"

"He is, with out doubt, the weakest of the Death Eaters." said Harry. "And without his wand, he's pretty much harmless. But believe me, he would be the last of the Death Eaters I would want to release, but I did what I thought was best."

"Wow Harry, that's amazing." said Ginny.

"What is?"

"Letting the man who is responsible for your parent's deaths go, just because he would be the least dangerous." Ginny replied. "That must have taken a lot of effort. Especially since he was finally caught after all these years."

Harry smiled at her. "It wasn't easy. But I did what I had to do."

"What was in the letter anyway?" asked Hermione.

Harry suddenly took a very serious tone. "The time, date, and place of the final battle."

(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)

Finally the day came. The day of the final battle. The outcome of this fight would decide the fate of the world. Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Ginny were waiting for the arrival of Voldemort, their entire army was behind them. The aurors, the acromantulas, the centaurs, the heliopaths, and all the member of the Order.

Hermione couldn't take her eyes off the heliopaths, and Ron couldn't take his eyes off the spiders.

"They're on our side. They're on our side." muttered Ron.

"Don't worry about them now." said Ginny. "There's other things to worry about."

Harry was quiet. He knew that today was going to be the day the Prophecy would be fulfilled. Either he or Voldemort was going to die.

Harry checked his watch. It was almost midnight. If Wormtail had followed through with his promise, Voldemort would be here soon. That was of course, if he decided to show up at all. But Harry didn't think that Voldemort could turn down a challenge when called out in front of all his followers.

Harry turned to everyone. He figured he better let them know exactly what was going on, before Voldemort showed up.

" _Sonorus!"_ he said, pointing his wand at his throat. "Everyone, listen to me!"

They all turned they're attention to him.

"Tonight is the night that will decide the fate of us all. I can only say that if any of you want to turn back, now is the time."

He waited, but no one moved.

"Then I can only say that we must do whatever it takes to win. But there is something you must know about Voldemort. He can not die."

There was confused muttering from everyone. Harry thought he better make himself a little more clear.

"What I mean is, he can not die yet. Voldemort has used a very ancient and very evil magic known as a Horcrux."

Some people gasped, but most still seemed confused.

"I will not take the time to explain it. It's probably better that you don't know what it is anyway. But Voldemort has two Horcruxes left. The first one is his pet snake, and the other is his wand. Both must be destroyed before he can be killed. They must be destroyed at all costs. Once they are, leave him to me."

"Harry, he's coming." said Ginny.

Harry turned. He saw that she was right. Voldemort was coming. And he had his own army. There were his Death Eaters, dementors, and giants.

" _Quietus."_  muttered Harry. "So, it's all coming down to this."

Voldemort raised his wand and cast the Dark Mark into the sky. Harry scar began burning painfully.

"So, Potter, you've called me out, and I have come!" cried Voldemort. "Do you really believe you can win?"

"I wouldn't be here if I didn't!" Harry called back. "It's time you paid for what you've done!"

Voldemort laughed. "What I have done has made me the most powerful sorcerer in the world! And now I will prove it to you, by doing what I should have done sixteen years ago!"

"Well then, lets end this once and for all!" cried Harry. "TAKE THEM!"

The side of darkness and the side of light charged at each other, to begin the battle of the future. The Dark Mark shined high in the sky, as the ultimate battle began below it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (A/N: I know, I have a bad habit of moving too fast when I write. A habit I'm trying to break. I still hope you enjoy it though. Please tell me your thoughts.)


	16. Final Assault

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (A/N: Big battle up ahead. Enjoy.)
> 
> Disclaimer: It's not mine, it never was mine, it never will be mine.

**Chapter 16: Final Assault**

No mercy was shown from either side. The battle was savage. The Death Eaters and aurors were sending spells everywhere. The heliopaths threw balls of fire left and right. The dementors sucked the life out of everyone close by. The giants rampaged over everything. The spiders sank their fangs into whatever they could. And the centaurs fired arrows everywhere. It was a battle unlike any other.

" _Stupefy!"_  shouted Harry.

A Death Eater fell to the ground stunned. He turned to another.

" _Stupefy!"_

The Death Eater blocked the spell and sent his own. Harry disapparated and fired off another spell when he reappeared. The Death Eater fell over stunned. Harry turned another Death Eater, who had his back turned. He was about to cast his spell when he heard it.

" _Why don't you give me that stone in your pocket."_

" _Lily, take Harry and go! It's him!"_

" _No, not Harry! Please not Harry"_

" _Stand aside, you silly girl!"_

" _Bow to death! It might even be painless."_

" _Blocked again and again until you learn to keep your mouth shut and your mind closed, Potter!"_

Harry felt the familiar cold miserable sensation of the dementors' effects on him. He heard the voices that always caused him the most pain.

He looked up. Several dementors were flying over him, sucking in all the joy from the world. He looked back at the battle. Many of the aurors were suffering from the dementors. If they didn't get rid of them, and soon, the dementors would gain the advantage.

" _Sonorus!"_  said Harry, pointing at his throat. "Take out the dementors!  _Expecto Patronum!"_

Several other voices cried out with him. The sky was filled with silver animals. From alligators to zebras. They all charged down the dementors. All the Patronums were too much for the dementors. They immediately retreated from the battle.

Harry felt their effects leave him immediately. This gave them a definite advantage. However, it came at a price. Since everyone had attacked the dementors at the same time, it gave the Death Eaters a chance to attack. Many aurors fell down dead.

The giants began trampling over everything. Most spells didn't work against them, because of their massive size. The centaurs went after them, launching arrow after arrow. The giants howled in pain, but kept coming.

Then the spiders attacked. While the giants had advantage in size, the spiders had advantage in numbers. They swarmed over the giants, sinking their poisonous fangs into them, and wrapping their webs all over them.

The giants stomped and crushed the spiders, but it was difficult with them constantly being bit, shot with arrows, and burned by the heliopaths.

The only giant that wasn't being attacked by centaurs, spiders, and heliopaths was Grawp. He was attacking the Death Eaters by picking them up and throwing them here and there.

Although Harry had told everyone to do whatever it took to win, the aurors still didn't seem to want to use the Unforgivable Curses, while the Death Eaters had no problem using the Killing Curses.

Harry turned to an auror who was fighting four Death Eaters at once.

" _Sectumsempra!"_  shouted Harry.

The Death Eaters collapsed.

"DON'T HOLD BACK!" shouted Harry.

"We're not, Potter." cried a voice.

Harry turned around. There was Lucius Malfoy, with his wand on him.

" _Avada Ked-"_

He never finished the spell, because at that moment a spider pounced on him and sank its teeth into his back.

Harry turned back to the battle. He started looking for Voldemort. To his surprise, he saw him in the same spot. He hadn't moved at all. He was watching the battle with an amused look on his face.

Then Harry saw it. The snake was circling around Voldemort's feet. So Voldemort was protecting her. He should have known, that Voldemort would just sit back and let his minions do his dirty work.

Harry wished he was closer. Then he would be able to take out the snake.

"Harry, look out!" shouted Hagrid.

Harry turned around. A giant was charging right at him.

" _Stupefy!"_  shouted Harry.

The spell just bounced off.

" _Sectumsempra!"_

A large bloody wound appeared over the giant. It stumbled, but didn't stop.

Harry ducked as the giant pounced on him.

The giant was thrown backwards. Harry opened his eyes and saw that Grawp had tackled the other giant.

Two more giants joined the fight. Grawp was being savagely beaten. Harry tried to help, but most of the spells he used didn't work.

"Harry, run!" shouted Grawp, right before one of the giants grabbed him and broke his neck.

"GRAWP!" shouted Hagrid.

He charged at the giants.

"Hagrid, NO!" cried Harry.

Hagrid didn't seem to hear him. He fired spell after spell at them with his pink umbrella.

The giants turned on Hagrid, and moved in to attack.

Harry pointed at one of the giants and cried  _"Wingardium Leviosa!"_

The giant flew into the air. Harry waved his wand and the giant crashed into the other two giants. Then the spiders swarmed over them.

"Harry look!" shouted Hermione.

She was pointing at Voldemort. At first Harry thought she was talking about the snake, but then he saw what she was really pointing at.

Behind Voldemort, an army of Inferi were slowly making their way towards the battle. Being so slow delayed their arrival time.

"The heliopaths can take care of them!" Harry called back.

Without another word, he began making his way towards Voldemort.

" _Petrificus Totalus!"_  he cried, pointing his wand at a Death Eater.

Another Death Eater came to take his place.

" _Crucio!"_

" _Protego!"_

" _Avada-"_

" _Langlock!"_

The Death Eater grabbed his throat.

" _Levicorpus!"_  thought Harry.

The Death Eater was lifted into the air. Harry stunned him, then let him down.

Another giant came charging at him.

" _Immobulus!"_  shouted Harry.

The giant didn't stop moving, but the spell caused it to fall. Harry turned away from the giant, and continued his way to Voldemort.

" _Stupefy!"_  roared a Death Eater.

Harry was hit. He fell to the ground stunned. The Death Eater stood over him. He raised his wand… and was hit by a spell. Flying bogeys were covering his face. He tried to swat them away, and was hit by a stunner.

Ginny stood over Harry. She pointed her wand at him and said  _"Ennervate!"_

Harry could move again.

"Thanks." he said

"No problem." she replied, and turned to find another opponent.

Harry turned back to Voldemort. He was close now. But some Inferi were blocking his path. Harry spotted a heliopath nearby.

"Burn them!" Harry called.

The heliopath turned to Harry and, spotting the Inferi, threw balls of fire at them. The Inferi scattered, giving Harry a clear path.

He was close now, but five giants came to stand in his way. They all pounced. Harry disapparated. He reappeared several feet away. Then it hit him. Why was he  _running_  towards Voldemort, when he could just apparate there?

Harry disapparated again, just as a Killing Curse hit where he was. He reappeared a short distance away from Voldemort.

Voldemort was right there. Harry was about to face him when he heard a voice he had hated for seven years.

" _Avada Kedavra!"_

Harry turned. Severus Snape was a few feet away, dueling Moody.

"You missed!" shouted Moody.  _"Stupefy!"_

Snape blocked the spell, and fired his own stunner.

Harry couldn't help but watch. The man who had stopped his mother from escaping, who had made Harry's time at Hogwarts miserable, that killed Albus Dumbledore in cold blood was right there. And Harry couldn't take his eyes away from the battle.

Moody, it seemed, had the advantage. But Snape was faster. He dodged the stunners Moody sent and blocked the rest.

"You'll pay for what you did to Albus!" declared Moody.

Snape didn't respond. Instead he apparated behind Moody. Just as Moody turned to face him, Snape apparated back.

" _Sectumsempra!"_  cried Snape, as Moody turned to face him again.

A large gash appeared over Moody's chest. He stumbled back, dripping blood everywhere.

" _Avada Kedavra!"_  cried Snape in triumph.

"NO!" shouted Harry.

Moody raised his wand and uselessly cried out  _"Protego!"_

The Killing Curse hit the shield, shattered it, and hit Moody.

The old auror's expression turned to one of shock. He flew backwards, leaving his wooden leg behind, still standing, and landed a few feet away. His magic eye rolled on the ground, until it bumped into Moody's wooden leg, which fell over and laid as still as Moody.

Uncontrollable rage filled Harry. He pointed his wand at Snape and thought  _"Levicorpus!"_

Snape was lifted off the ground, and hung in midair. Harry ran over to him with his wand pointed at Snape's upside-down heart.

"YOU MISERABLE BASTARD!" Harry shouted. "HOW COULD YOU DO THIS? AFTER EVERYTHING DUMBLEDORE DID FOR YOU! AFTER HE DEFENDED YOU FOR BEING A DEATH EATER! YOU MURDERED HIM IN COLD BLOOD, YOU DAMN COWARD!"

"DON'T CALL ME COWARD!" Snape shouted back. "Your damn father always called me coward! He made a fool out of me in front of everyone! He wouldn't even face me one on one! He always was with his friends! And you call me a coward! I am NOT a coward!"

"You are a coward!" shouted Harry. "And you are a murderer! I know what you've done! I saw how you stopped my mother from leaving that night! I know you blamed Sirius for Wormtail's treachery! And you were going let him have the Dementor's Kiss! And I know why Dumbledore trusted you too! Voldemort put you up to it!"

Snape let himself down. Harry saw that he was smiling.

"Yes, Potter." he sneered. "And his plan worked too. Albus always was too trusting. And in the end he died because of it. Never once did the old fool suspect me. He never suspected that I knew the truth about your godfather. He never knew that I had volunteered to teach Occulumency on the Dark Lord's orders, so I could look into your mind. He never suspected that I reported to the Dark Lord first, when Umbridge took you and the mudblood into the Forbidden Forest, asking for instructions. He never knew that I was the one that informed Draco that the headmaster would be leaving the night I killed him. He never even suspected that I was the one who killed his brother, Aberforth."

Harry flinched, as another flash of pain and anger went through him. Snape just confessed to murdering Dumbledore's brother as well. And he spoke with amusement in his voice. Although Harry had never met Dumbledore's brother, it was still his uncle, and it was still another death Snape was responsible for.

"You're sick." said Harry.

Snape started raising his wand.

"Don't move!" snapped Harry.

Snape stopped, but smiled.

"What are you going to do?" he sneered. "Kill me? You don't have it in you."

"I killed Bellatrix, didn't I?" replied Harry.

"Only to save your girlfriend." said Snape, smiling more broadly. "You would do anything to protect your friends. But you won't kill me without a reason. So I'll tell you what. I'm going to give you a reason. I'll give you to the count of three. Then you die."

Harry flinched again. Voldemort had said the exact same thing to his mother.

"One…" said Snape, raising his wand.

Harry's arm shook, but he couldn't attack.

"Two…"

Harry was not a killer. He couldn't kill without a reason… But Snape had given him a reason.

"Three!"

" _Avada Kedavra!"_

Snape's eyes widened in surprise. The spell hit him, and he fell to the ground dead.

Harry stared at Snape's lifeless corpse. He was dead. Finished. Dumbledore's death had finally been avenged.

" _Expelliarmus!"_

Harry's wand flew out of his hand.

" _Accio Wand!"_

Harry's wand flew away from him. Voldemort caught it.

"Well, well, Potter, I'm impressed." sneered Voldemort. "You've proven that you're capable of extraordinary power when given the right motivation. You could make a very powerful Dark Lord."

Anger filled Harry. "Never! I'm nothing like you! You're nothing more than a common murderer!"

" _Crucio!"_

Harry was filled with pain. He fell to the ground screaming. Finally the pain stopped.

"Get up, Potter." ordered Voldemort. "I'm not going to kill you just yet. I want you to see your friends die. Now come here!"

Harry was dragged by an unseen force towards Voldemort.

"Draco!" called Voldemort.

There was a  _crack_ and Draco Malfoy appeared.

"Yes, my lord?" said Malfoy in a terrified voice.

Voldemort handed Malfoy Harry's wand. "Make sure Potter watches the battle. If he tries anything, stun him."

Malfoy nodded, and pointed his wand at Harry while Voldemort turned back to the battle.

"You heard him, Potter!" said Malfoy. "Watch the fight."

Harry glared at Malfoy, but turned to the battle. With Malfoy holding Harry's wand, and aiming his own at him, there wasn't really anything else he could do.

The fight was worse than he thought it would be. Fire, spells, and arrows flew everywhere. Warriors on each side were dropping dead. Harry only watched a few seconds before he had to turn away. Then he saw it again. The snake. Curled up by Voldemort's feet. Harry turned back to Malfoy. He saw a pained expression on his face.

"Malfoy, listen to me." he whispered.

"Shut up, Potter!" snapped Malfoy.

"No, listen to me. You don't have to do this. We can still stop him."

"No we can't." said Malfoy. Tears began pouring down his face. "There is no stopping him."

"Yes, there is. All we have to do is kill his snake."

Malfoy looked a Nagini.

"His snake?" said Malfoy with a puzzled look. "What's his snake got to with this?"

"It's too complicated to explain right now." Harry said impatiently. "But if we can kill his snake, then we at least stand a fighting chance. You don't have to do this. I mean, is this really what you want?"

Malfoy looked at the battle. He saw everyone fighting for their lives. More tears began falling down his cheeks.

"You're just trying to trick me!" said Malfoy savagely.

"No I'm not." said Harry. "I was there the night Dumbledore died. I saw you start to lower your wand. Dumbledore is right. You're not a killer. I know you don't want this. Look at all the pain Voldemort has caused. I even saw what he made your father do to your mum."

Malfoy flinched.

"But it's not to late." Harry assured him. "Just give me my wand."

Malfoy's expression turned to anger. He turned away from Harry. Harry sighed and looked back at the battle. It seemed Malfoy wasn't going to give in.

" _Reducto!"_  shouted Malfoy.

The snake suddenly exploded as the spell hit it. Harry turned to Malfoy. He handed Harry his wand, as Voldemort turned to them.

"TRAITOR!" shouted Voldemort.

He raised his wand.

" _Sectumsempra!"_  shouted Harry.

A large bloody gash appeared diagonally across Voldemort's face. He stumbled back several feet and fell over. But to Harry and Malfoy's surprise, he got up.

"Leave him out of this." said Harry. "Lets settle this one on one. You and me in a duel."

Voldemort stood up, wiping the blood off his face. His eyes darted from Harry to Malfoy.

"Very well, Potter." Voldemort hissed. "We shall duel. Just you and me. It seems only fit that you and I should end this. We do, after all, walk in the path of the prophecy. You hold your scar I have given you, and now it appears I now hold one you have given me. But now we shall truly settle this once and for all."

Voldemort pointed his wand into the sky and sent up several firecrackers, stopping the battle.

"It seems that Potter here wishes to face me in a duel!" shouted Voldemort. "I have excepted his challenge! And now we shall prove once and for all who is superior! There is to be no interruptions! If you interfere, I will kill you myself! Now come gather around, and watch as I crush The-Boy-Who-Lived!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (A/N: Big showdown next.)


	17. The Showdown

**Chapter 17: The Showdown**

"Harry, are you sure about this?" asked Hermione.

He nodded. "I always knew it would come to this. And now it has."

"Well just be careful, mate." said Ron.

"I will." said Harry. "But you must not interfere. If you do, the fighting will start all over again. Leave him to me."

"If that's what you want." said Hermione sadly.

Harry nodded at her. Then he turned to Ginny. She threw her arms around him.

"Oh Harry, be careful." she said. "Come back to me."

Harry smiled at her. "I will."

The two of them kissed. They kissed like they never had before. Finally Ginny broke away from him.

"You better." she said.

Then she took her place in the crowd. Harry and Voldemort walked towards each other. It was time to fulfill the prophecy. One of them was going to die. But before Voldemort could, Harry would have to get his wand and destroy it. After that, he would have the upper hand.

"There will be no escape for you this time, Potter." hissed Voldemort.

"I don't plan on running this time." said Harry.

Voldemort laughed. "Good. Then let us begin, shall we?"

He bowed to Harry, who did not bow back.

"I thought we've been through this." sneered Voldemort. "Bow to death!"

Anger filled Harry. He had said the same thing in the graveyard.

"I don't bow to filth!" snapped Harry.

Voldemort sighed. "I thought you would have learned your lesson from our last duel. I guess I'll have to teach you respect all over again, won't I?  _Crucio!"_

Harry was ready.  _"Protego!"_  He deflected the spell.

"So, you've improved since our last battle." said Voldemort smiling. "Lets see how much."

He fired another spell at Harry, who apparated a short distance away.

" _Expelliarmus!"_  he shouted.

His spell hit air, as Voldemort appeared behind him.

" _Crucio!"_

This time Harry was hit. The pain seemed to go on for hours. Finally, it stopped.

"Pathetic, Potter." sneered Voldemort. "Had I used the Killing Curse rather than the Cruciatus, you would be dead already."

Harry got shakingly to his feet. He knew Voldemort was playing with him. Taking his sweet old time finishing him off. Well that was just fine with Harry. It would give him more time to get to Voldemort's wand.

" _Petrificus Totalus!"_  Harry cried.

Voldemort was ready.  _"Protego! Imperio!"_

Harry felt his mind go blank, as he fell under the Imperius Curse. He forgot who he was, where he was, and what he was doing.

"You're mine now!" he heard his master say. "Lets see how you will feel when you discover that you are the one who killed your friends."

Harry turned to Ron, Hermione, and Ginny. They looked terrified. Harry didn't recognize them. Yet, they were familiar.

"Kill them." ordered his master.

Harry felt his arm start to move. He held it back. Why was he listening to this person? They were not his master. And he was just going to kill these people because he was told to?

"Kill them, I say!"

Wait! He did know them. Ron Weasley, his best friend, who he had met on his first day aboard the Hogwarts Express. Hermione Granger, the smartest witch of their age, who helped him more times than he could remember. Ginny Weasley, the love of his life, who he who he would die to protect.

"Kill them!"

That voice. He recognized that voice. It wasn't his master. It was Lord Voldemort. The one who had murdered his parents.

"Kill them, NOW!"

"NO!" shouted Harry.

The curse was lifted. Everything came back to him. He glared at Voldemort.

"Leave them out of this! This is between you and me!"

"Stubborn as ever, eh Potter." hissed Voldemort. "No matter. I'll whip you into shape before this is over."

He waved his wand. A long black whip, glowing with red light, erupted from his wand. He whipped it at Harry. It wrapped around his feet, burning him as if it were on fire. Voldemort pulled back, and brought Harry crashing to the ground.

Voldemort pulled the whip back and whipped out again. Harry, with his Quidditch reflexes, grabbed the end of the whip before it hit him, ignoring the burning sensation.

Voldemort snapped his fingers. The whip detached itself from his wand and turned into a long black snake. It hissed at Harry, who threw it into the crowd of Death Eaters.

Voldemort took aim and fired another spell. What looked like a strand of DNA erupted from his wand. One side of the strand was fire, and the other was electricity.

Harry jumped up crying  _"Protego!"_

The fire/electricity strand crashed into his shield. It held back the spell, but pushed Harry back several feet.

Voldemort fired another spell, this time aiming at Harry's feet. The ground he was standing on froze over. Harry slipped on the ice and banged his head on the ground. It was clear that Voldemort wasn't giving him a chance.

" _Reducto!"_  Voldemort shouted.

Seeing stars, Harry rolled to his side, as the ground exploded where he had just been laying.

He rolled over again and again, as Voldemort repeated the spell three more times, creating more craters in the ground.

"Come now, Potter." said Voldemort. "Fight back!"

" _Expecto Patronum!"_  cried Harry.

Voldemort was taken by surprise, as Prongs appeared and slammed into him, sending him flying. He landed several feet away as Prongs rammed into him again.

" _Expecto Patronum!"_  shouted Voldemort.

A long silver snake burst out of Voldemort's wand. The snack struck, biting Prongs on the neck, and wrapping its body around him. The two Patronuses fought for a few seconds before vanishing in a flash of light.

Voldemort was on his feet again. He aimed at Harry, who too was on his feet, and fired a spell. Harry disapparated and reappeared behind Voldemort. He fired his own spell, but Voldemort mimicked Harry's move, apparating behind him.

Harry disapparated again, and so did Voldemort. They began reappearing, firing a spell, and disappearing again. Soon they stopped firing spells and just began rapidly apparating all over the place.

"I never knew Harry could fight like this." said Ron, trying to keep track of them.

"I hope he's careful." said Hermione in a terrified voice.

"He will be!" said Ginny fiercely.  _"Please be careful."_  she thought to herself.

Voldemort suddenly stopped apparating. He watched Harry constantly appear and disappear around him. Voldemort closed his eyes and concentrated. After a few seconds his eyes snapped open, and he pointed his wand at an empty space.

" _Impedimenta!"_  he cried.

Harry appeared in the place Voldemort cast the spell. He went flying backwards, landing hard on his back several feet away.

Voldemort waved his wand rapidly. Black and purple flames shot out of the end of his wand, like a flamethrower.

Harry had seen those flames before. In his first year, when he tried to get the Sorcerer's Stone. However, he didn't want to find out what they did. He rolled away again, as the ground burst into flames. A second later, the flames went out, leaving a rather deep hole filled with ashes.

Harry spotted a large rock behind Voldemort. He raised his wand and cried  _"Accio Rock!"_

The rock burst up from the ground, it was twice as big as it had looked when it was buried, and flew towards Harry.

Voldemort, who had cried out  _"Protego!"_ , thinking Harry was trying to attack him, was hit hard in the back, since he stood between Harry and the rock. He fell to the ground, moaning in pain.

"You'll pay for that!" growled Voldemort, getting to his feet.

Voldemort cried  _"Crucio!"_  the same time Harry shouted  _"Supefy!"_  The two spells collided in midair, and a familiar thing happened. The two wands became connected by gold beams of light, and both Harry and Voldemort were lifted of the ground.

"NO, POTTER!" shouted Voldemort. "No  _Prior Incantatem_  this time!

With a burst of strength, Voldemort broke the connection. The gold light faded and Harry and Voldemort fell to the ground.

But Voldemort didn't give Harry a chance to react. He swung his wand again. What looked like a thick gray robe, but was in fact a miniature tornado, burst from the end of his wand. It wrapped around Harry and lifted him off the ground.

Voldemort swung the tornado-rope around like a lasso, swinging Harry with it, before it released Harry, sending him flying.

Harry landed by his friends. They helped him to his feet.

"Harry, you alright?" asked Ron, anxiously.

"I'm fine." Harry assured them.

"Be careful." said Hermione.

"I believe in you." said Ginny. "Just come back to me."

Harry nodded. He limped back to Voldemort who was smiling at him.

"Back for more?" sneered Voldemort.

" _Sectumsempra!"_  Harry cried, just before disapparating.

Voldemort easily blocked the spell, but was unprepared when Harry appeared behind him shouting  _"Stupefy!"_

Direct hit! The spell hit Voldemort in the back. He stumbled forward some, but that was it. He turned to face a shocked Harry.

"You'll have to do better than that." he said.

Then he raised his wand over his head and began muttering. The end of his wand began flashing yellow light. Harry didn't see it, but Voldemort's shadow had come to life and attacked Harry's.

Harry gasped for breath, as invisible hands close around his neck. Voldemort's shadow was strangling Harry's shadow, as the real Voldemort continued muttering.

Unable to speak, Harry thought  _"Levicorpus!"_

Voldemort was lifted off the ground. The flashing light stopped and the shadows returned to normal.

As Harry sucked down air, Voldemort pointed his wand at him. A large net, made of barbwire, came out of his wand, and flew at Harry.

Harry waved his own wand and the barbwire net turned into a giant spider web. Messy, but harmless.

Voldemort, in the meantime, had let himself down and prepared for another attack.

" _Crucio!"_  he cried.

Harry was hit by the spell. He fell to the ground, twitching in pain.

"Don't expect me to stop this time." hissed Voldemort. "I'm going to torture you out of your mind."

Using all the strength he could muster, Harry pointed his wand at Voldemort and cried  _"Diffindo!"_

Voldemort cried out in pain, as his left ear was cut off.

The pain stopped, and Harry jumped to his feet. Voldemort held onto the place his ear had once been, fighting the pain. He looked at Harry with a mixture of hatred and surprise. Who could have the strength to attack while under the Cruciatus Curse?

Voldemort held his other hand up. Harry was pulled by an invisible force towards Voldemort. His cold fingers closed over Harry's throat.

"That was a mistake!" he hissed.

Harry responded by sticking his wand into Voldemort's face and cried  _"Relashio!"_

Voldemort released Harry and began rubbing his eyes, as sparks flew out of Harry's wand into his face.

Harry took advantage of the moment and cried  _"Sectumsempra!"_

Voldemort blindly cried out  _"Protego!"_ He blocked the spell and shouted  _"Avada Kedavra!"_

Harry disapparated, reappearing a few feet away. Voldemort turned to face him, his eyes flashing violently.

"You will not make a fool out of me!" shouted Voldemort. I'm through fooling around! Your time is up!"

Voldemort nonverbally used  _"Expelliarmus!"_ Harry tried to block the spell, but wasn't fast enough. His wand flew out of his hand.

Voldemort pointed his wand at Harry. He had a look of triumph on his face.

"You see, Potter," sneered Voldemort. "You were never a match for me. And now, you shall die!  _Avada Kedavra!"_

There was nothing Harry could do. He laid helplessly on the ground. His wand was several feet away from him. The spell came, and he was unable to stop it.


	18. Fate

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (A/N: Final chapter)
> 
> Disclaimer: I own nothing.

**(A/N: Final chapter)**

**Chapter 18: Fate**

Something red moved in front of Harry and was hit by the spell.

"Fawkes!" gasped Harry.

Dumbledore's phoenix had come out of nowhere into the path of the curse. It burst into flames and fell to the ground in a heap of ashes. But it had saved Harry from certain death.

Harry didn't hesitate. He dove for his wand and grabbed it.

"What the?" gasped Voldemort. "Dumbledore's phoenix? Where did that…" Then he spotted Harry with his wand again.

"No, you will not escape!" cried Voldemort.

He fired another Killing Curse at. Harry disapparated. Voldemort fired another. Harry disapparated again.

Again and again, Voldemort fired the Killing Curse, and again and again, Harry avoided them.

"I'm going to kill you!" shouted Voldemort.

"It's seems killing people and creating Horcruxes is all you can do!" Harry shouted back.

Voldemort stopped firing curses. He had a stunned look on his face.

"What did you say, Potter?" he hissed.

Harry smiled at the look of fear on Voldemort's face. "You heard me. Your Horcruxes. You know exactly what I'm talking about. And I would like you to know that they've been destroyed. Your diary, Marvolo's ring, Hufflepuff's cup, Slytherin's locket, your snake."

Voldemort's eyes widened with each Horcrux harry named.

"All that's left is your wand. You've split your soul into seven pieces. And now all you have left to protect you is your wand. Looks like you're not as safe as you thought… Uncle Tom."

Voldemort's cat-like eyes were as round as Galleons. There were shocked gasps from the Death Eaters and members of the Order alike.

Harry smiled more broadly. "What, didn't he tell you? The founders of Hogwarts are direct descendants of Merlin. Both of us are direct descendants of the founders. I guess there's a lot of things he didn't tell you."

"It matters not!" hissed Voldemort. "We are related by blood, nothing more. But your family has been tainted forever. Your father, marrying a mudbood. Forever contaminating the Gryffindor bloodline."

"What about your mother!" Harry shot back. "Marrying a muggle! You're half-blood too."

"Silence!"

"No!" snapped Harry. "It's time everyone learned the truth. You've been telling everyone that only pure-bloods deserve to live and that all others deserve to die, then you are merely insulting yourself. In fact, according to your rules, if the superior wizard is the one who's blood contains more magic, then I should be superior to you. Even though my mother was muggleborn, she still had more magic in her than your muggle father."

The Death Eaters were all muttering to each other and looking at Voldemort as though they've never seen him before.

"LIES!" shouted Voldemort.

" _Levicorpus!"_  thought Harry.

Voldemort was lifted off the ground.

"No, Tom. They are not lies." said Harry. "And you know it. The superiority of the wizard does not depend on the purity of the blood. And apparently, deep down, you think so too."

"What do you mean?"

"The prophecy, Tom." Harry explained. "When you heard the prophecy of the one destined to destroy you, why did you choose me? You had two options that the prophecy was referring to. Me, the half-blood, and Neville Longbottom, the pure-blood."

There were more shocked gasps.

"The prophecy stated that you will mark him as your equal. And you chose the half-blood. Now why would you chose a filthy half-blood as your equal, and see him as a danger, when there was a pure-blood out there, which, according to you, is the only kind of wizard worth being or knowing?"

Voldemort let himself down. He stared at Harry with pure hatred in his eyes.

"Your words mean nothing, Potter!" hissed Voldemort. "If you think you can turn my followers against me, you are sadly mistaken!"

"I'm not trying to do anything." said Harry. "I'm merely telling everyone everything that you've kept from them."

"One more word, Potter, and you shall be sorry!" threatened Voldemort.

"What are you going to do?" laughed Harry. "Kill me? Do you think that shows that you're superior? There is more to power than being able to take a life."

"You sound like Dumbledore." hissed Voldemort.

"Yes, I guess I do." said Harry smiling. "My uncle was very wise. Far more intelligent than you ever will be. You think that being able to kill gives you power? You're wrong."

Voldemort laughed. "What power greater, than being able to take a life?"

"How about not taking a life?" snapped Harry. "Being able to let someone live, no matter how much you want them dead, is a far greater power. Taking a person's life proves you are weak. It shows you are not strong enough to escape your own hatred. But I am not going to kill you because I am weak, or because I want to. I'm going to kill you so you can't hurt anyone else."

Voldemort began laughing harder. "So you think I'm weak? Is that it, Potter? Then you are a fool. I do not kill because I am weak. I kill because I choose to. Being strong enough to take a life is a symbol of power. There is no power greater. I have taught this to all my followers. There is no good and evil! There is only power, and those too weak to seek it! You are the one who is weak! You are not willing to do what you must to achieve true power!"

Harry shook his head. "You're wrong, Tom. Love is the greatest power there is! Dumbledore had said it all his life. And if he says something, it must be true!"

"Love, Potter!" laughed Voldemort. "Love is nothing. You can't achieve anything with love. Love can't give you power. Love can't save you. Let me show you what true power is!"

Voldemort raised his wand. But he wasn't pointing at Harry. He was pointing at Ginny.

" _Avada Kedavra!"_

Harry's eyes widened with fear, as he realized what Voldemort was doing. Green light erupted Voldemort's wand, heading straight for Ginny.

Harry apparated in front of her. He would not let Voldemort kill anyone he cared for anymore. Knowing it was useless, but doing it anyway, Harry raised his wand and cried,  _"Protego!"_

The jet of green light kept coming. It made contact with Harry's shield. And suddenly, it was gone.

Harry blinked in surprise. Shocked gasps came from everyone, Avada Kedavra was supposed to be unblockable. Yet, Harry's shield had stopped it, and remained perfectly intact.

"What's this trickery?" cried Voldemort.

Harry thought about it a moment. Finally, a smile spread across his face.

"No, Tom, it's not trickery. I think I finally understand what Dumbledore meant when he said love is the greatest power in the world."

"What nonsense is this?" said Voldemort, impatiently.

"It's not nonsense, Tom. It makes perfect sense once you think about it. Avada Kedavra is a spell of pure hate. When you attacked Ginny, my immediate reaction was to defend against the attack. My shield was fueled by my love for Ginny. Love is more powerful than hate. And with my shield powered by love, your spell of hate could not penetrate it. It appears that Avada Kedavra was only unblockable because no one ever tried to defend against it the right way."

Voldemort looked livid. But he was not willing to accept what Harry was saying.

"Nonsense, Potter." growled Voldemort. "I merely messed up. Even the greatest of people make mistakes."

"Are you trying to convince me, Tom, or yourself?" asked Harry, enjoying the fear in Voldemort's voice.

"I'm not trying to convince anyone!" cried Voldemort angrily. "It's the only explanation! I'll prove it!  _Avada Kedavra!"_

Harry relaxed. He let the thoughts of his loved once fill him. He was fighting for them, not for himself. Raising his wand he cried  _"Protego!"_

The green light made contact with Harry's shield. But it did not penetrate.

Harry saw fear in Voldemort's eyes.

"This is impossible!" he shouted.  _"Avada Kedavra! Avada Kedavra! AVADA KEDAVRA!"_

Harry blocked the spells again.

"It's over, Tom." declared Harry. "Taking lives was the only power you had. Now that I have taken that away, you're nothing!"

Harry took a step towards Voldemort, who took a step back.

"Do something!" he cried to his Death Eaters. "Kill him! Attack! Will you do something!"

Some of the Death Eaters moved uncomfortably, but none attacked.

"Kill him, I say! KILL HIM!"

"What's wrong, Tom?" asked Harry. "You and me are just having a friendly duel, and now you, the mighty Lord Voldemort, need help to beat a 17 year old boy."

Voldemort's eyes flashed violently. Harry could see a mixture of anger, fear, hatred, and betrayal in them.

"Do something! I command you!"

" _Crucio!_ " cried Harry.

Voldemort was unprepared for the attack. He flew backwards, his wand flying out of his hand.

"Look at you." said Harry. "Look what's become of the so called great Lord Voldemort. The one who's name everyone once feared. Look what's happened to you. You've been reduced to a helpless being, with one seventh of a soul left. Hard to believe that the pathetic creature at my feet was once so might and powerful. So many fell to you and your followers. Do you even remember how many there were? Let me refresh your memory a bit. There was Albus Dumbledore."

Harry nonverbally used the Cruciatus Curse on Voldemort again as he said the name.

"Sirius Black." He increased the curse's intensity. "Moaning Myrtle. Cedric Diggory. Amelia Bones. Grawp. Bertha Jorkins. Percy Weasley. Alastor Moody."

Voldemort twitched in pain, as the curse became more intense with each name Harry said.

"My dad. My MUM!"

Voldemort was shaking uncontrollably. Suddenly the pain stopped, as Harry lifted the curse.

"What you've just felt is only a small amount of the pain I've been feeling." said Harry sounding close to tears. "Tell me, Tom, how does it feel to be at the other end of the wand? How do you like being tortured? You don't like it, do you? Yet, you find pleasure causing others pain."

Voldemort began crawling away from Harry, towards his wand.

"You're all alone, Tom." continued Harry. "You have no one and nothing. That's what happens when you don't care for anyone. No one will care for you in return."

Voldemort was a foot away from his wand.

"Sure you have your followers, but it's not the same as having people that actually care for you,"

Harry turned to his friends.

"My friends, you have always stood by my side. Even in the darkest of times. I couldn't ask for anything more from you."

Voldemort's fingers closed over his wand. He slowly began to rise to his feet.

"I have truly been blessed to have such good friends, and I can't thank you enough for all that you've done."

Voldemort was now on his feet. He turned to Harry, who had his back turned.

"Now, I must do what I've been destined to do for several years."

Voldemort raised his wand and opened his mouth to say the spell.

" _AVADA KEDAVRA!"_  cried Harry, turning around, with his wand pointing at Voldemort.

The spell hit Voldemort in the chest, just as he was about to cry out the very same curse.

Voldemort flew backwards and landed several feet away. His wand flew out of his hand again.

But only his robes fell to the ground. There was no body. Voldemort was gone.

Or was he? There  _was_  something inside the robes. It came crawling out.

Harry recognized what it was. It was the very creature Wormtail had dropped in the cauldron three years ago. It looked at Harry and hissed. Harry saw that the creature's tongue was actually a snake that looked just like Nagini, which hissed at him too.

The creature began crawling away. Harry pointed his wand at it.

" _Avada Kedavra!"_  he cried.

The creature was struck dead. And out of the lifeless body came a shadow. It looked like

a ghost, but it was more solid. And it was all black, almost like smoke.

It turned to Harry. Its face was flat and snake-like and it's eyes were blood red. It was Voldemort's life force. Harry had reduced him back to the weak bodiless being that he had become the night his parent's were killed.

"NO!" cried Voldemort. His voice seemed to come from every direction. "This can not be happening to me!"

"It's over, Tom." said Harry, picking up Voldemort's wand. "Your reign of terror ends now. There's only one thing keeping you alive."

Harry snapped Voldemort's wand in half.

Voldemort cried out in rage as his final Horcrux was destroyed. The final piece of his soul rose out of the wand and vanished.

Voldemort howled in pain. The only thing keeping him alive was now gone.

Voldemort's dark life force began to implode, almost as if he was being sucked inside himself. Then it erupted in a flash of light. Voldemort's screams echoed through the night.

Then it was over. Voldemort's cries silenced. His life force was gone. It was finally finished. Tom Marvolo Riddle, Lord Voldemort was dead.

No one moved or made a sound, as they took in what had happened. Voldemort was gone. Killed before their very eyes.

Harry tossed the broken pieces of the wand away. He turned to the Death Eaters, wondering what they were going to do.

Finally, one of them stepped forward. His wand fell from his hand, and he dropped to his knees in defeat. Soon all of the Death Eaters followed him. Dropping their wands and collapsing to their knees. Their master was dead. And he had been a fake all this time. Poisoning their minds with lies. Now, with truth revealed, their master truly gone, and everything they had been fighting for had been for nothing, they didn't want to fight anymore.

Even the giants backed down. Voldemort had been the one who promised them their rights, but now he was gone.

The enchanted bodies of the Inferi fell to the ground lifeless. No longer under Voldemort's control.

The Dark Mark shining in the sky vanished in a puff of smoke. The war was finally over.

Harry turned to the others, and smiled at them. After a few seconds of silence, everyone began cheering. The realization that the war was finally over dawned upon them. Harry suddenly found himself being hugged by everyone.

"Harry, you did it!" cried Hermione.

"Way to go, mate!" said Ron, patting him on the back.

Ginny threw her arms around him and kissed him. "I knew you could do it."

Hagrid came and wrapped all four of them in a bear huge. Tears were pouring down his face. "Yeh did it, Harry. Oh, if only Grawp were here."

"Don't be sad Hagrid." said Harry. "We have all suffered loses. But they did not die in vain. If it hadn't been for Grawp, I would be dead now."

Hagrid sobbed harder, but couldn't speak anymore.

Harry looked at the Death Eaters and giants. "What will happen to them?"

"They will receive a life sentence in Azkaban." said Lupin. "As for the giants and the dementers, with Voldemort gone, they'll probably go back to the way they were before. But enough about them. Harry, you were amazing out there."

Harry smiled. "I couldn't have done it with out all you help."

Lupin smiled at him. "Your parents would be so proud."

Harry smiled more broadly. He looked back at the cheering crowd. Now with the war finally and truly over, they could get back to they're lives.

A stab of regret came upon Harry as he realized that this war had been his whole life. Now with it over, he would have to start over. But now he would do it on his own. With the prophecy fulfilled, he could walk his own path. And he couldn't ask for better friends to do it with.

There was a small chirp. Harry looked down. The baby Fawkes was laying by his feet. Harry bent down and picked him up. He didn't know where Fawkes had come from. He hadn't seen him since the night Dumbledore died. But if it hadn't been for Fawkes, Harry wouldn't be alive right now.

"Come on, lets get out of here." said Lupin. "We need to report this to the minister at once. If you thought you were famous before, Harry, you haven't seen nothing yet."

Harry laughed at the reality of Lupin's words.

"Yeah, I guess your right." he said.

They walked off into the sunrise. Ready for the next journey of their lives.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (A/N: Well that's it for 'Harry Potter and the Search for the Horcruxes'. I hope you all enjoyed it, and thanks to everyone who read and reviewed, it really means a lot to me. I am currently starting a sequel call 'Harry Potter and the Dawn of a New Era'. Unfortunately I will not be able to update as fast as I did with this story, with school starting again and everything. Thanks again to all my readers.)
> 
> Next installment: Harry Potter and the Dawn of a New Era  
> https://archiveofourown.org/works/17096852/chapters/40206827

**Author's Note:**

> (A/N: I hope everyone enjoys my story. Please review.)


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